Role of ultrasound in detection of ectopic pregnancy: our experience

ABSTRACT

To determine the efficacy of ultrasound in detection of ectopic pregnancy. Design: It was an observational and prospective study. Place and Duration of Study The study was conducted from January, 1997 to January, 2000 in the Radiology Department of the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. Subjects and Four hundred patients were referred for sonography with a query of ectopic pregnancy. Most of the patients had clinical symptoms of vaginal bleeding and lower abdominal pain with history of missed periods. For the evaluation biphasic ultrasound was performed that included suprapubic and transvaginal ultrasound. After analyzing internal architecture prospective sonographic diagnosis was made. The most common site of ectopic pregnancy was fallopian tubes. Positive diagnosis was made in 96.3% cases and negative diagnosis in 4.7% cases in our study. Conclusions: Efficacy of ultrasound was found to be 96.4% in the detection of ectopic pregnancy and hence plays a very important role in early diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy