Comparison of Four Different Pain Relief Methods during Hysterosalpingography: A Randomized Controlled Study

Abstract

Hysterosalpingography is an important technique for the diagnosis of infertility, and involves injection of contrast medium into the uterus to visualize the anatomy of the reproductive system. Unfortunately, the procedure can be painful, although multiple pain management techniques are available. This study was conducted to determine which of four pain management techniques is the most effective for pain relief during hysterosalpingectomy. The most painful parts of the procedure were also assessed.

Experiences of Spanish women undergoing hysterosalpingography as part of the infertility process: a phenomenological study

“…) and local lidocaine (Unlu et al . ) have been described as potential pain relievers. In addition, with regard to reducing anxiety levels, the efficiency of taking valerian has been previously tested (Gharib et al .…”

Women’s experience with pain during hysterosalpingographic investigation in Calabar, South-South Nigeria

“…Evaluation of pain experienced and its management showed the mean pain score experienced was 5.7±2.5(sd). Severe pain [7][8][9][10] was experienced by 29(31.2%) and moderate pain [4][5][6] by 35(37.6%). The severity of pains was not significantly influenced by the age (P=0.25), educational level (P=1.0) or Parity (P=0.22) of the women (Table 4).…”

“…On the other hand, in another study of review of pains during HSG it was found that gentle handling of patients and use of balloons were associated with reduced pains [12]. Also, a previous study found that pain was worse at the point of instilling constrast media and a combination of nonsteroidal analgesic and paracervical block was associated with less pain [8]. Anaesthesia is not used during HSG because it is an outpatient procedure and patients need to get back home in a fully conscious state.…”

“…Tubal pathology contributes to 60 % of female infertility in Nigeria and HSG is often the first line test in most centres offering infertility care [2,[5][6][7]. It provides a view of the uterine cavity and the fallopian tubes which allows detection of endometrial and tubal pathologies [4,8]. It is often performed as an outpatient procedure preferably in the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle.…”

“…Several measures to reduce the pain at hysterosalpingography include use of balloon catheters , local anaesthetic agents and analgesic [7][8][9]. A meta analysis showed that use and none use of pharmacological agents did not significantly alter the intensity of pains experienced by women undergoing the investigation [11].…”