IntroductionThe objectives were to assess the diagnostic value of hysterosalpingography (HSG) with laparoscopy as gold standard in the evaluation of tubal patency and pelvic adhesions in women suffering from infertility.MethodsWe conducted a comparative cross sectional study on 208 medical files of infertile women followed up at the Yaoundé General Hospital during a period of five years (December 2007 to December 2012). Tubal patency, hydrosalpinx and pelvic adhesions detected at HSG were compared with laparoscopic findings as the gold standard. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and diagnostic accuracy of HSG were calculated with 95% confidence interval (CI).ResultsMean age of the patients was 31.4± 6.45 years. Secondary infertility was the most frequent type of infertility (66.82%). HSG had a moderate sensitivity (51.0%; 95% IC. 37.5-64.4), high specificity (90.0%; 95% IC.74.4-96.5), high PPV (89.3%; 95% IC. 72.8-96.3) and a moderate NPV (52.9%; 95% IC. 39.5-65.9) in the diagnosis of bilateral proximal tubal occlusion. Concerning, distal tubal patency, HSG had a high sensitivity (86.8%; 95% IC. 76.7-92.9), low specificity (42.2%; 95% CI. 29.0-56.7), moderate PPV (69.4%; 95% IC. 58.9-78.2) and a moderate NPV (67.9%; 95% IC. 49.3-82.0) in the diagnosis of bilateral or unilateral distal tubal occlusion. However, HSG had a low diagnostic value (27.8%; 95%IC.18.8-39.0) in the pelvic adhesions.ConclusionHSG is of limited diagnostic value in tubal factor infertility and is of low diagnostic value for pelvic adhesions.

Background: Infertility is a global problem, but the highest prevalence is in low resource countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where tubal damage following pelvic infection is the commonest cause. Objectives: This study aimed to assess contribution of laparoscopy as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool in infertile women in our setting. Methods: A descriptive review of complete medical records of 208 women who underwent laparoscopy at the Gynaecology Unit of Yaoundé General Hospital from December 2007 to December 2012. Results: Two hundred and eight women were enrolled in this study. Mean age was 32.6 ± 11.25 years. Infertility was secondary in 71.6% of cases; 125 (60.1%) women were married and 116 (55.8%) had a positive serology of Chlamydia trachomatis infection. The most frequent findings during diagnostic laparoscopy were: pelvic adhesions (83.7%), hydrosalpinx (21.6%), pyosalpinx (4.8%), perihepatic adhesions (25.5%), uterine fibromas (22.6%), pelvic endometriosis (13%) and ovarian abnormalities (10.1%). The surgical procedures during laparoscopy were: adhesiolysis (79.7%), tuboplasty (35.0%), salpingectomy (8.2%), ovarian cystectomy (5.8%) and myomectomy (1.9%). Three (1.4%) cases of uterine perforation and 1 (0.5%) case of laparoscopy conversion to laparotomy were observed. Conclusion: Diagnostic laparoscopy revealed that tubal lesions and pelvic adhesions were still the major causes of female infertility in developing countries. Adhesiolysis and tuboplasty were the most frequently performed surgical procedures during laparoscopy. Therefore, training in endoscopic