Successful pregnancies with the use of laminaria tents before embryo transfer for refractory cervical stenosis

Objective: To determine whether laminaria tents are a safe and effective method of cervical dilatation in patients with a history of cervical stenosis and difficult ET. Design: Case reports describing two patients. Setting: Tertiary care, assisted reproduction practice. Patient(s): Two patients with cervical stenosis and a history of multiple failed cycles of IVF. Intervention(s): Laminaria tents were placed intracervically before ET. Main Outcome Measure(s): Presence of a gestational sac and fetal heartbeat on ultrasound. Result(s): Successful clinical pregnancies occurred in both patients after laminaria placement and ET. Conclusion(s): Laminaria tent cervical dilatation appears to be a safe and effective option to assist ET in patients with a history of cervical stenosis. (C) 1997 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.