I'm Mrs Uma Gordon, consultant gynaecologist and specialist in reproductive medicine and surgery. I'm also the clinical director of the Bristol Fertility Clinic. In this video, I'd like to speak about HyCoSy, which is hysterosalpingo-contrast-sonography. It's a test that we use to actually look at your uterine cavity as well as look at the patency of your tubes, whether they're open or not. Previously, an x-ray dye test used to be called hysterosalpingogram was the one that was being used, but really more and more reproductive medicine specialists should be using this HyCoSy procedure. It has got two aspects to it. One is called SIS, saline infusion sonography or saline infusion scan. Occasionally, I think it's referred to also as an Aquascan where we inject saltwater or saline into the uterine cavity. And we check that your cavity is looking uniform and normal.
If there are things that are coming into the cavity, then that's a problem because they can affect implantation. So one, it checks your uterine cavity, which is very important. Two, it then tells us once we inject the dye, whether that dye can come through the tubes, it's done as an outpatient procedure, it's done in a clinic. And so it does not require any sedation, but certain precautions need to be taken and an information sheet will be provided, which is very important you read and follow it carefully. Please also note with HyCoSy that can improve your chances of conception over the next three months to four months with unexplained infertility. So if you've been thoroughly evaluated and assessed and the diagnosis is unexplained infertility and you've been trying for a couple of years and haven't succeeded in getting pregnant, sometimes clinics offer you treatments such as IVF, but it may be worthwhile to do a HyCoSy procedure to see if you will conceive over the next three to four months before we move into more expensive invasive treatment options and to be aware of that as well.
