Ovarian puncture: what it is, recovery and risks

Broadly speaking, ovarian puncture consists of the extraction of the mature eggs within the follicle. Under normal conditions, women release a mature egg each menstrual cycle, but when a greater number of these sex cells are required, techniques are used to stimulate their maturation and shortly before they can be released by the follicle, an ovarian puncture is performed. .

Through periodic controls by the specialist doctor, the date on which the follicular puncture is to be carried out is programmed, which although it is a simple technique and lasts approximately 20 minutes, it must be carried out in an operating room. For this, you must enter the medical center on the same day, at least one hour before the operation and with fasting in the last 6 hours.

The procedure frequently begins with the administration of anesthesia, either local or general, or some sedative, although in some cases the doctor may choose not to apply anything. Subsequently, visualizing by ultrasound, the surgeon introduces a transvaginal ultrasound that incorporates the aspiration needle into the vagina , it is placed at the correct angle and the needle is directed towards the ovary through the vagina. Once this structure has been reached, the aspiration of its liquid content that stores the ovules begins and these pass to test tubes that are connected to the ultrasound machine to be protected at a temperature of 37 ° within a laboratory, as soon as they have gone through a cleaning and separation process.

The stimulation of the maturation of several eggs and their subsequent extraction is used in assisted reproduction treatments , especially in women who have not been able to get pregnant naturally but their eggs are functional. Likewise, ovarian puncture is practiced for the donation of gametes , in which the sex cells are extracted from a healthy woman and who meets the established requirements to be used later in another woman who requires them.

On the other hand, a practice that is increasingly gaining ground is that women use follicular puncture for the preservation of their eggs in the best quality age, between 20 and 30 years, and that later they can make use of them, if you want to have a child at an older age. It is also recommended for this purpose to women who will undergo treatments that could damage their reproductive capacity and thus be able to use their own sex cells to become pregnant later if desired.

Care and recovery time are minimal, once the ovarian puncture is completed. The woman must be transferred to a room and remain in it until she is no longer under the effects of anesthesia, her vital signs are normal and she does not present any discomfort, which is usually within a couple of hours. They generally provide fluids to stimulate urine production and remove anesthesia from the body faster.

If nothing was given for pain during the procedure, a routine check-up is enough and you can go home in a few minutes. In any case, it is recommended that another person accompany you and take care of the transfer to the home, since it is common for there to be disorientation or slight discomfort.

Although it is not mandatory, it is best to rest the rest of the day and avoid overexertion for the next 24 hours as a prevention, in addition to monitoring any abnormal situation.

Within the usual, there may be slight discomfort in the abdominal area and slight vaginal bleeding, but they disappear soon and if this does not happen, it is necessary to go to the doctor to determine what is causing it.

As it is a simple and non-invasive process, the probability of complications is low. But among the most frequent, there is a risk during follicular puncture of an injury to the vaginal blood vessels causing bleeding , although it can also be caused by damage to other pelvic structures, such as the ovarian pedicle, uterine arteries , ureters and even the large intestine. Although it is normal for there to be bleeding after the procedure, if it is very abundant or of a strange color or texture, you should go to the doctor as soon as possible.

If instead, the symptoms are abdominal swelling, severe pain in the area and fever, it is possibly a case of pelvic infection , another risk for ovarian puncture and that is usually treated with intravenous administration of antibiotics. It may be due to an injury to the pelvic structures or other factors, for example if you have previously suffered from pelvic inflammatory processes.

On the other hand, anesthesia could generate some side effects, mainly nausea, vomiting or changes in blood pressure, but it does not usually represent a risk situation.

This article is merely informative, at FastlyHeal .com we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any type of condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to Ovarian Puncture: what it is, recovery and risks , we recommend that you enter our category of Medication and medical tests .