'IMPOSSIBLE PREGNANCY'
Mum shocked to get pregnant after having Fallopian tubes REMOVED to stop her conceiving
A MUM-of-three who had her Fallopian tubes removed to stop her having more children was shocked to discover she was pregnant.
Elizabeth Kough, 39, had decided her family was complete and opted for the procedure - bilateral salpingectomy - three years ago.
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But last year she started to feel unwell, and having had three previous pregnancies she recognised the symptoms.
She bought a home pregnancy test and was shocked to see a positive result.
The mum, from Kansas City, Missouri, said she "freaked out" and woke her boyfriend, demanding he drive her straight to the hospital.
Once she got there another test confirmed she was pregnant, so she insisted on an ultrasound amid fears the baby was stuck somewhere in her abdominal cavity.
But the scan revealed the tiny fetus was safely nestled in her uterus.
'I was floored'
She told the: “I was kind of floored, like how does this happen?
"And they said, ‘Well, it’s probably a botched surgery'.”
Elizabeth, a US Marine Corps veteran, had the operation in Virginia in 2015.
She was 35, divorced and already had three kids — now aged 17, 11 and nine — and wasn't planning to have any more.
There was also a history of ovarian cancer in her family and Fallopian tube removal can reduce the risk of getting it.
She said medical professionals had assured her the operation would make it impossible for her to conceive.
Yet in March this year she gave birth to a healthy baby boy named Benjamin, who weighed 7lb 6oz.
'Exceptionally lucky'
Elizabeth said: “Of course at first I was shocked and I was like, ‘this isn’t in my plan'.
“I’m a planner. But now, you know, sometimes the best laid plans, you need to just do away with those.
"He is a beautiful baby. I am exceptionally lucky to have him in my life.”
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists say that the rate of pregnancy for women who have a partial removal of their Fallopian tubes is about 7.5 per cent per 1,000.
However, there isn't any comprehensive data on women who become pregnant after having a full removal - like Elizabeth.
I’m a planner. But now, you know, sometimes the best laid plans, you need to just do away with those
Elizabeth Kough
The first documented case was published in medical journals in 2005 when a 38-year-old British woman arrived at A&E only to be told she was pregnant despite having her tubes removed.
Usually an egg has to travel from the ovaries, into the Fallopian tube to get fertilised before continuing to the uterus.
But without the tubes it should be nearly impossible to get pregnant without using IVF, which Elizabeth says she didn't do.
What is salpingectomy?
Salpingectomy is the surgical removal of one (unilateral) or both (bilateral) fallopian tubes.
Fallopian tubes allow eggs to travel from the ovaries to the uterus.
It's usually offered as an option for reducing the risk of ovarian cancer.
But the procedure can also be used as a method of permanent birth control.
Source:
Her doctors at Meritas Health in Virginia have been unable to explain the pregnancy and documents provided to the local paper show that the surgery was a success.
Elizabeth added: “They said, ‘No there’s nothing there. The surgeon did everything correctly. There’s no tubes. So, he truly was a miracle baby.”
Meritas Health declined to comment on the case specifically, but said in general, bilateral salpingectomy is nearly 100 per cent effective at preventing pregnancy when performed correctly.
MORE ON PREGNANCY
An article published in the Singapore Medical Journal in 2007 theorised that in some women the area where the Fallopian tube previously connected to the uterus might not completely close over.
In very rare cases, this could result in an egg travelling through the space between the ovary and the uterus and reaching the opening at the right moment.
This is known as trans-peritoneal migration, and while it can happen it is very uncommon.
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