What Can I Expect During a Tubal Ligation Reversal?

At one time in your life, the decision to undergo tubal ligation made a lot of sense. Now, your circumstances have changed, and you want to build your family anew. If you’re a candidate for tubal ligation reversal, this procedure offers a wonderful path back to fertility.

Here at Innovation Fertility Preservation and IVF, Dr. Kutluk Oktay and our team have had considerable success helping our patients make their family-building dreams come true thanks to a wide range of fertility options, including tubal ligation reversal surgery.

Here’s a closer look at what happens during a tubal ligation reversal.

Are you a candidate for tubal ligation reversal?

Before you opt for tubal ligation reversal surgery, there are a few factors that can influence your success, including:

• The health of your Fallopian tubes and how much viable tissue remains
• Your age 
• The method first used for your tubal ligation
• The presence of scar tissue
• The viability of the sperm you intend to use

Should none of these factors present any potential problems, tubal ligation reversal is successful 75-80% of the time.

Rest assured, if we find that tubal ligation may not be the best approach for re-establishing your fertility, you still have options, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Undergoing tubal ligation reversal

Medically known as tubal reanastomosis, this reversal procedure is typically a bit more involved than the original ligation.

When you come in, we place you under general anesthesia and insert a laparoscope through your navel to assess the state of your Fallopian tubes. At this point, we may discover that reversal isn’t feasible because of too much damage to your Fallopian tubes or not enough tissue to work with to establish a clear passageway.

Please note that we make every effort to evaluate your viability ahead of time, so it isn’t often that we discover an insurmountable problem once we get started.

If we do find that we can continue, we assess whether to continue the work laparoscopically or to make a small incision that allows us better access to your tubes for reconnection. In either case, our goal is to be as minimally invasive as possible. 

Once we gain the needed access to your Fallopian tubes, we remove any damaged tissue and reconnect the ends of your Fallopian tubes using tiny absorbable sutures. When we’re satisfied that we’ve done everything we can to open the passageways again, we close your incisions.

After your tubal ligation reversal

In many cases, you may be able to return home on the same day of your tubal ligation reversal, though we ask that someone accompany you as you’ve been under general anesthesia.

For the first week or two after your tubal ligation reversal, you should plan on taking it easy and giving yourself time to heal. We supply you with complete aftercare instructions that cover everything from wound cleaning to recommendations for returning to your normal activities. We’re also with you every step of the way and just a phone call away should you have any questions.

Once the area has fully healed, it’s time to test your new fertility, and it’s impossible to say here how long that might take or whether you’ll be successful. Again, we’re by your side should you encounter any difficulties.

If you have more questions about undergoing a tubal ligation reversal procedure, please don't hesitate to contact our Midtown Manhattan office in New York City.