Genital tuberculosis—a major pelvic factor causing infertility in Indian women

• Published in: Fertility and sterility Vol. 67; no. 3; pp. 497 - 500
• Main Authors: Parikh, Firuza R., Nadkarni, Suparna G., Kamat, Sudesh A., Naik, Nandkishore, Soonawala, Shamsah B., Parikh, Rajesh M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.03.1997; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Adult; Bacterial diseases; Bacterial diseases of the genital system; Biological and medical sciences; Embryo Transfer; endometrial biopsy; Endometriosis - complications; Endometriosis - epidemiology; Fallopian Tube Diseases - etiology; Fallopian Tube Diseases - microbiology; Female; Female genital diseases; Fertilization in Vitro; frozen pelvis; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Human bacterial diseases; Humans; India; Infectious diseases; infertility; Infertility, Female - epidemiology; Infertility, Female - etiology; Infertility, Female - microbiology; IVF-ET; laparoscopy; Medical sciences; Non tumoral diseases; oligomenorrhea; Postoperative Complications; Pregnancy; Pregnancy, Ectopic; Retrospective Studies; tuberculin antigen; Tuberculosis; Tuberculosis, Female Genital - complications; Tuberculosis, Female Genital - epidemiology; Asia; India; laparoscopy; oligomenorrhea; Tuberculosis; frozen pelvis; infertility; tuberculin antigen; IVF-ET; endometrial biopsy; Infection; Human; Etiology; Female genital system; Bacteriosis; Female; Female sterility; Mycobacterial infection; Female genital diseases; Fallopian tube pathology
• ISSN: 0015-0282; 1556-5653
• DOI: 10.1016/S0015-0282(97)80076-3

To study the effect of tuberculosis, a common infectious disease in the Indian subcontinent, on the female pelvic factor and its subsequent effect on female fertility. Retrospective case studies. Department of Infertility Management and Assisted Reproduction, Jaslok Hospital and Research Centre, Bombay, India. Three hundred women, between the ages of 25 and 35 years, with tubal factor as a cause of their infertile state. One hundred seventeen women with a tubal factor were found to have tuberculosis as the cause of tubal blockage. On laparoscopy, 49.5% were found to have simple tubal blockage, 15.3% showed tubo-ovarian masses, and 23.9% had a frozen pelvis. Seventy-five percent complained of menstrual irregularities, thus indicating endometrial involvement; 25.6% of these women underwent an IVF procedure. The pregnancy rate after IVF-ET was 16.6% per transfer. This study highlights the fact that tuberculosis, a chronic infectious disease, is one of the major etiologic factors of female tubal infertility, especially on the Indian subcontinent.