Tubal Ligation

Permanently Preventing Pregnancy

When a woman wants to avoid becoming pregnant in her future, she may consider tubal ligation – commonly known as getting your “tubes tied.” Surgeons at Bassett Healthcare Network offer tubal ligation, or fallopian tube removal– a gynecologic surgery – as a permanent birth control option.

Reasons for Tubal Ligation

Women who choose tubal ligation do so because:

• They do not want to bear children in the future
• For them, pregnancy may be a health risk
• They are concerned about passing on a possible genetic or other health condition to their child
• They cannot physically tolerate the side effects of other methods of contraception

During the Surgery

Tubal ligation, or removal of tubes at Bassett Healthcare Network is performed in a hospital operating room. If you are having a C-section delivery, you can undergo tubal ligation, or have your “tubes tied,” during the same procedure. The surgeons will either give you general anesthesia or a local anesthetic to block any possible pain.

If you are not pregnant, the surgery is done by using laparoscopy, and takes about 30 minutes, during which your surgeon makes a small incision in your abdomen, then cuts, clamps, or removes the fallopian tubes, or seals them with electricity. The fallopian tubes are the channels through which your eggs travel in order to be fertilized.

After tubal ligation, pregnancy is extremely rare. If a sperm is able to fertilize an egg, however, it is possible for an ectopic pregnancy to occur.

Tubal Ligation Recovery

After receiving your tubal ligation, you can expect to go home the same day. You should ask your practitioner when it will be safe to have sex again, as your body will need time to heal.

Note that although tubal ligation prevents pregnancy, it does not prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Unless you are certain that your partner is not infected, you should continue to use barrier protection, such as a condom.

Talk to Your Primary Care Practitioner

If you are sure that you do not want to become pregnant in the future, contact your primary care physician or practitioner to talk about your options for permanent birth control, or call 1-800-BASSETT for a referral.

Bassett Healthcare Network offers tubal ligation in Central New York, including at its hospitals in Cooperstown, Oneonta, Herkimer, and Cobleskill.