Been Told That You Need An Endometrial Biopsy?

Here are some things to consider

An endometrial biopsy (EB) is often done on women who are undergoing evaluation of abnormal periods or for an infertility issue.

An EB involves the passage of a small instrument into the cervix at which point the lining is randomly scraped and the specimen which is obtained is submitted to lab for analysis. The endometrial biopsy is a screening test for abnormalities such as endometrial hyperplasia (a pre-cancerous condition of the uterus) and endometrial cancer.

While endometrial biopsy provides valuable information there are several things worth noting if you are considering this procedure in a physician’s office.

1. Endometrial biopsy is a blind Even though EB produces a tissue specimen it is a random specimen and may not be adequate in assuring you and your physician that you don’t have a pre-cancerous lesion of the uterus.
2. Endometrial biopsy is often painful. Most physicians do not offer analgesics or sedation for endometrial biopsy. While many women tolerate it quite well, others find it painful or intolerable. Postmenopausal women or those that have never had a vaginal delivery are at high risk of significant pain with endometrial biopsy.
3. Endometrial biopsy, itself, provides little information regarding the existence of uterine fibroids or endometrial polyps.
4. Endometrial biopsy does not offer treatment. In other words if a physician sees a polyp, endometrial biopsy will not effectively remove it.

With the invention of small diameter hysteroscopes—no larger than a biopsy instrument—a diagnostic hysteroscopy can be performed with intravenous sedation right in our accredited office-based surgical center. The information you and your physician are provided with is far superior to blind endometrial biopsy and very often treatment is possible at the very same time.

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