SONOHYSTEROGRAPHY VERSUS HYSTEROSCOPY FOR DIAGNOSING ENDOUTERINE ABNORMALITIES IN FERTILE WOMEN

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the usefulness of abdominal and vaginal sonohysterography (SHG) (considered both singly and in combination) for the diagnosis of intrauterine abnormalities. METHODS, At the Department of obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Bari, Italy, the results of the abdominal and vaginal SHG were retrospectively compared with those of conventional transvaginal sonography and hysteroscopy in 35 fertile women in whom a hysteroscopy was indicated. The sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of intrauterine abnormalities of both kinds of SHG (considered both singly and in combination), transvaginal sonography and hysteroscopy were compared; the predictive values of abnormal and normal SHG were determined by a 2 x 2 table relating the test results to the patients' abnormalities shown at hysteroscopy. RESULTS: The combination of both abdominal and vaginal SHG had a sensitivity of 95% and a specificity of 100%; the predictive value of an abnormal test was 100% and that of a normal test 94%. CONCLUSIONS, SHG provides a reliable diagnosis of intrauterine abnormalities. However, hysteroscopy, and guided biopsies remain the decisive diagnostic test for investigating intrauterine abnormalities.