Laminaria insertion? (SAIFW)

Tryingtogetpregnant

Has anyone had this or heard of it? I forgot - another fun detail in my email from my nurse is that I need a Laminaria inserted. I have read some not pretty things about this procedure. It supposedly takes your cervix opening from a pinhole to a pencil eraser hole in a matter of 24 hours!!! So, have you had this? How bad was it? I have to have it within 30 days of my ET. Sweet. P.S. - Why is there a hurricane out of nowhere in St. Louis? Such weird weather here in the midwest!

MontyMrs

Why do you need to do that? ?Wouldn't having your cervix opened more for that long before your ET give you a heightened risk of infection? ?

Did you get your dates revised? ?

Tryingtogetpregnant

No word on the dates - my nurse is slow - it will probably be tonight or the morning.

It is for people with "tricky" cervixes. I am not sure why it needs to be done this early - there is a very specific time range for it. I really don't get it. Of course, my nurse just mentions it nonchalantly. Ha!

 

MontyMrs

It seems like endless waiting and endless procedures sometimes. ?Its' CCRM so I'm sure they know what they're doing, I didn't mean to sound so negative! ?I'll be interested to see the info on this. ?I hope you get some good news on the rescheduling.

Tryingtogetpregnant

I am in the bitter betty boat with you. It does suck. I just pray that we can get it moved forward some and we can move into a time warp in the meantime.

 

BRSaugust20

I know I've seen some girls post on this because they needed it for their HSG.  I would have thought it had to be done within 24-48 hours before your ET.  A 30 day window seems crazy long.  Hopefully after you talk to the nurse you can get this straightened out!

yogisunam

I had them inserted before my D+C last year. I felt some mild cramping when they put it in, and then nothing for the rest of the day. Though they had said some cramping is possible. But it does it very slowly.

I have a pretty compliant cervix, though. 

schoolsoutbride

I know they do it sometimes to induce labor. ?I would think it woudl cause some undomfortable cramping.

sescms2004

Yes, I had this done for my HSG.  Went in for the initial HSG and the radiologist informed me that my cervical opening was the size of a pinhole and could not get the catheter through.  I then went straight to the RE's office for the laminaria.  I don't think this is normal, but for me it was very painful during insertion.  I must have had a little scar tissue or something blocking the opening, because she pushed through it and I almost fell off the table.  It looks like a little matchstick, and basically is made of natural fibers that expand.  I went back the next day to have it removed (it takes 24 hrs I believe), then went back to the radiologist for the HSG. 

Good luck with yours....I hope it is not too bad!

epphd

What?!? I am really suprised by this.  I know very little about laminaria placement, except from the horror stories from (if I remember correctly)Larisa at thewaitingwomb blog.  She had a really horrible time with transfers, and the laminaria placement was a last ditch shot. I think that on her successful transfer...no laminaria needed.

My doc uses a progesterone supp to soften the cervix, and it worked great.  Laminaria sounds quite invasive

Have you had trouble with transfer before?

ETA: Larisa's posts regarding laminaria: https://waitingwomb.blogspot.com/search/label/laminaria

Also - her successful IVF was #4 - no laminaria but she did have cervical dilation.

justmarriedMer

Hi there - laminaria are seaweed sticks that are about 5 or so centimeters long with a small string attached on one end.  Their name is derived from the kelp that they are made from.  They come in different sizes (all basically the same length).  Basically, they are very dry wooden sticks, and they are used to dilate the cervix; placing them in the cervix absorbs mucus and moisture and causes the cervix to open.  I have never heard of them being used in an infertility setting.  I have seen them used to prepare a patient's cervix for a D&E, for which you put as many laminaria in as you need to to dilate the cervix the amount that you need to.  You have to insert them all the way into the cervical canal for the dilation part to work.  They are usually placed 24 hours before the procedure, and right before insertion, you have to prep the cervix with cleaning solution.  Hope this helps.

cantthinkofone

I had one for my D&C.  Not to scare you, but it was extremely painful when they put it in.  My cervix was extremely closed (missed miscarriage) and it took them about 15 minutes using several scary tools to put it in.  It is seaweed and it absorbs the moisture to open your cervix.  Mine was done about 3 hours before my D&C.  Unfortunately, it didn't help much for me because they still had problems with small opening to my cervix during the actual D&C process.  It seems strange that they would do this for a ET.  I have been told on several occasions that the opening to my cervix is small, but had no problems whatsoever during the transfer.