Minilaparotomy for female sterilization: a feasibility study of a new technique.

Abstract

Female sterilization via a minilaparotomy incision was performed on 30 patients at Al-Azhar University Teaching Hospital in Cairo, Egypt. A uterine sound fed through a Foley catheter was used as a uterine elevator. A 2 cm suprapubic transverse laparotomy was performed and sterilization was accomplished by fimbriectomy. Twenty patients received general anesthesia and 10 patients initially received local anesthesia. Surgical time ranged from 7 to 15 min, and the average duration of hospitalization was 8 hours. Blood loss was small, and no patient was transfused. One patient had a wound infection. This pilot study indicates that this procedure is relatively simple, safe and inexpensive.