# Transvaginal ultrasound



## Jes (Aug 3, 2011)

Ladies, for those of you who have had them, can you give me a play-by-play? Is there any prep involved? Have you had a tech adminstering the test? How long does the entire thing take, start to finish. What does it feel like? When did you get results? Can you watch the monitor?  --also, did you also have an external ultrasound of the same area at the same time?

I know that a few of you have shared experiences before, but I'm afraid I don't know exactly where, anymore, and I'm hoping that posting and reading will push me into finally making my appt!

thanks.


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## TheMrs (Aug 3, 2011)

No prep. Pretty much painless. Doesn't take very long although that could depend on what they are looking for. They lube the u/s wand and insert it and move it in the direction in which they are looking for something, in my case, my left ovary was playing hide & seek Was a little uncomfortable but never painful to me. My u/s tech & gyn were women so I was completely comfortable. Well, as comfortable as one can be naked from the waist down, legs in stirrups and a strange woman with a wand shoved up ya. LOL


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## TheMrs (Aug 3, 2011)

And I meant to add, I could see the monitor and she was pointing out different things to me, took about 15 min.


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## ButlerGirl09 (Aug 3, 2011)

I had my first one done at 16 and that was loooonngg before any man had been near that area. Understandably so I was frightened! But it really wasn't bad at all. Of course during the test it felt like it took an hour, but really it was like 15-20 minutes. The tech was very nice and explained everything thoroughly to ease my nerves. It wasn't painful, just a little uncomfortable with some pressure at times. I also had an external ultrasound done and honestly that was worse--I had to drink a ridiculous amount of water and then they were pushing, poking, and prodding which left me very uncomfortable! But the transvaginal was really not as big of a deal as it seemed. It was done very professionally and efficiently in order to minimize any discomfort I might have. Plus it was essential in getting answers about what was going on with that area for me. So I would encourage you to schedule it if your doctor is recommending you have it done as it will be much more helpful than harmful!


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## Sweet Tooth (Aug 3, 2011)

I used to have to have them regularly when my ex-husband and I were doing fertility treatments and more recently for some unusual bleeding. The only prep was whether or not they told you to pee or if they needed you to have a full bladder.

It didn't take long, normally, and in my cases they were also doing the external. The last time I needed one, the technician was training a young woman who was uncomfortable doing such an intimate ultrasound but she did well and the regular technician checked everything afterwards. No looking at the monitor, but I was told I have "beautiful pelvic anatomy". :huh: LOL And with them both looking, it took like 45 minutes. I felt like someone owed me dinner when I was finished.


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## penguin (Aug 3, 2011)

I only had them during the early stages of my pregnancy, but they slipped a condom on it, lube it up and slip it in. I could see things on the monitor as they were looking for my baby and I definitely wanted to see that. They also had a chaperone in the room during one of them, because it was a male tech and apparently they like to cover their asses by having a female tech in the room to make sure nothing untoward happened. I don't know if they did it with female techs doing the scan, because my other scans were at the hospital, not that place (they only did ultrasounds and x-rays there).


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## mel (Aug 3, 2011)

I actually had one today. No prep needed. My tech did an external ultrasound and then had me empty my bladder, discard some clothing and position as such as a pap would have me do. The wand was lubed and inserted and took about 20 or so minutes. I did have slight cramping when she was proding around my left ovary. Other than that no discomfort during or after the procedure. At the very end she did another external ultrasound. Total time from her explaing what would be done, procedure and getting dressed was about 45 minutes.


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## Miss Vickie (Aug 4, 2011)

Yup. What everyone said. I've had many, mostly for cysts and irregular bleeding and it can feel a little uncomfortable as they move the wand in different directions to take measurements. They measure your uterus in two directions. They measure your endometrium (the part that sheds). They look at each ovary, measuring its size and if it has cysts, they measure those too. So there's a lot of watching them clicking and dragging lines to measure each thing. I've mostly been able to watch.

In some places, they ask YOU to insert the wand, and in some places you insert it yourself. I'm not sure which is more awkward. 

Go get it done. It's not so bad, really. Neck ultrasounds, which I have to get yearly, where they measure each and every lymph node in my neck (and I think I have hundreds -- it takes an hour or two) is much much worse.

I hope you're ok? Anything you wanna talk about? Drop me a line.


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## Jes (Aug 4, 2011)

Thanks, all. 
Yes, I'm certainly planning on having it done. I need to figure out where my referral is, whether it's still good (prob not) and what to do now that my insurance company changed at the fiscal year.
I had expected to hear it wasn't painful or even uncomfortable, so I'm glad to know a bit more about what to expect. I also thought it would be a shorter test. Let's hope I'm not having pelvic pain on the day, but then again, in some ways, that might be best, in terms of diagnosis.
I'll admit I don't like the thought of a tech doing it--I would prefer a dr. or nurse, but that's my own opinion. I have no intention of a male tech doing this, so that's something I'll need to ask when I call the hospital for an appt.

* * *
[In other, laterally-related, Hyde Park-y news, in doing research, I came across some U.S. bill that requires all women having an abortion to go for a transvaginal ultrasound beforehand. On whose dime? For what reason? The Congressman didn't seem to know that this was a somewhat invasive test (he thought it was external), but he still wanted it to be the law. Oh, yes, Republicans want to end big gov't and get it out of your personal life, all right.]


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## Miss Vickie (Aug 4, 2011)

Jes said:


> Thanks, all.
> Yes, I'm certainly planning on having it done. I need to figure out where my referral is, whether it's still good (prob not) and what to do now that my insurance company changed at the fiscal year.
> I had expected to hear it wasn't painful or even uncomfortable, so I'm glad to know a bit more about what to expect. I also thought it would be a shorter test. Let's hope I'm not having pelvic pain on the day, but then again, in some ways, that might be best, in terms of diagnosis.
> I'll admit I don't like the thought of a tech doing it--I would prefer a dr. or nurse, but that's my own opinion. I have no intention of a male tech doing this, so that's something I'll need to ask when I call the hospital for an appt.



Definitely let them know you don't want a male tech. They should have both men and women available, and most often, it's women doing it. Oh and you don't want a nurse doing it. We're hopeless at that sort of thing.  Some nurses have extra training but we're not nearly as good as a radiology tech. It's a totally different skill set. Even the MD's I know do a great job but refer out if they find something squirrelly to let the experts do the measuring. 

About the only thing I can do with an ultrasound is determine fetal position. Other than that, I'm hopeless.

* * *


> In other, laterally-related, Hyde Park-y news, in doing research, I came across some U.S. bill that requires all women having an abortion to go for a transvaginal ultrasound beforehand. On whose dime? For what reason? The Congressman didn't seem to know that this was a somewhat invasive test (he thought it was external), but he still wanted it to be the law. Oh, yes, Republicans want to end big gov't and get it out of your personal life, all right.]



Yeah an external ultrasound in early pregnancy is pretty useless; you can't see anything and you have to do an transvaginal to find an early pregnancy, and it's pretty invasive. Obviously the writer of the bill is ignorant about medical procedures which is exactly why we don't want legislators making health care decisions. Just like we don't want doctors making legal decisions. Or nurses designing buildings. I'm sure you get the picture.


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## Jes (Aug 4, 2011)

Miss Vickie said:


> About the only thing I can do with an ultrasound is determine fetal position. Other than that, I'm hopeless.
> 
> * * *
> I'm pretty sure you could tell me where my vagina was.
> ...


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## Diana_Prince245 (Aug 5, 2011)

You never know, Jes. I'm in nursing school, and at least half the women in my class asked what a foreskin was


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## SparklingBBW (Aug 6, 2011)

Jes said:


> Miss Vickie said:
> 
> 
> > About the only thing I can do with an ultrasound is determine fetal position. Other than that, I'm hopeless.
> ...


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## Lamia (Aug 6, 2011)

I wish you the best on your visit sounds scary to me too.


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## Jes (Aug 7, 2011)

I don't think it sounds scary, I just like a play by play of everything. It comes from being a control freak.


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## Miss Vickie (Aug 7, 2011)

Jes said:


> I don't think it sounds scary, I just like a play by play of everything. It comes from being a control freak.



Yeah it's not scary. Given the grand scheme of things, it's far less drama even than a speculum exam and pap smear. And it's fun to see your inside bits!


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## SSBBWMJ (Aug 12, 2011)

Jes said:


> Ladies, for those of you who have had them, can you give me a play-by-play? Is there any prep involved? Have you had a tech adminstering the test? How long does the entire thing take, start to finish. What does it feel like? When did you get results? Can you watch the monitor?  --also, did you also have an external ultrasound of the same area at the same time?
> 
> I know that a few of you have shared experiences before, but I'm afraid I don't know exactly where, anymore, and I'm hoping that posting and reading will push me into finally making my appt!
> 
> thanks.



The first time I had it done was at the ER where i live. A male tech did it. But there was a female nurse who was supposed to insert the wand. She gave me the option of inserting it ... so I did. Worked for me that way cause I was hella nervous. It does take a lil while. Maybe 20 minutes. They will tell you when you do it. Probably depends on what they are looking for and if everything is visible. He didnt let me see the monitor and didnt tell me anything. Sucked. But oh well. My legs got tired cause I was so tense. Just make sure you relax the best you can.
I had another one done a couple weeks ago. I was 13 weeks pregnant at that time. I had a reg ultra sound first but the tech (female this time) had a hard time seeing my lil one. So she did the trans one next. She inserted the wand. Same thing ... legs got tired. Lol. BUUUUUT she showed me the monitor ... the screen swiveled around to I could see. It was amazing to see my lil one ... much better pic than with the reg ultra sound. Anyways ... not sure what your situation is ... but I wish you the best of luck!!


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## thatgirl08 (Aug 18, 2011)

Jes said:


> Ladies, for those of you who have had them, can you give me a play-by-play? Is there any prep involved? Have you had a tech adminstering the test? How long does the entire thing take, start to finish. What does it feel like? When did you get results? Can you watch the monitor?  --also, did you also have an external ultrasound of the same area at the same time?
> 
> I know that a few of you have shared experiences before, but I'm afraid I don't know exactly where, anymore, and I'm hoping that posting and reading will push me into finally making my appt!
> 
> thanks.



I had one done as part of the testing to determine whether I had cysts on my ovaries. 

I was definitely dreading it.. I was afraid it'd be painful, I was nervous about being that exposed to a tech, and my doctor also specifically wanted me to go while I still had my period. The thing that prompted my doctor to test for PCOS was that I was having extremely painful heavy periods.. I wasn't exactly thrilled about having to have any kind of exam while I was bleeding that heavily, but I went. 

I was really nervous when I walked in because my tech was a thin girl in her early 20s.. the last kind of person I'd want to be that naked in front of. But, she was extremely professional and friendly. She left the room so I could climb onto the table and cover my bottom half with a sheet (my top half was still clothed.) She didn't really see anything except the bottom of my legs because she basically just put the thing underneath the sheet approximately where she thought my vagina was and then she had me actually insert it. Once it was inserted she was able to grab onto it again and point it where it needed to go. The sheet was covering me the entire time. She left the room again so I could get changed after. She was also really nice about me having my period and didn't act grossed out at all.. that made me feel better too.

However, the process itself was extremely painful for me. Even though she used some kind of lube on the probe thing (I'm not sure what the technical name for it is), inserting it was pretty painful and it just got worse from there. In order to get a clear picture she had to push into the walls which I found to be very painful. She was finally able to get a clear picture of the right ovary but as she started on the left I just couldn't take it anymore and I had to tell her to stop. I actually started to tear up and ended up full out sobbing by the time I got to the car. I think it may have been more painful for me because I had my period and was already experience severe cramping before I went in. She told me at the time that a lot of girls, especially virgins (although I wasn't one), have pain but the level of pain is different for everyone obviously. 

From start to finish it took about 20 minutes, probably would've taken 5 or 10 more for her to finish taking pictures of the other ovary. She did let me look at the monitor during it and also answered all of my questions. Although she wasn't technically supposed to give me any results she more or less explained to me what she saw and what that might indicate. I received official results from my PCP about two weeks later.

I did have an external ultrasound at the same time immediately before having the transvaginal. That actually made me feel a little more uncomfortable because I had to be shirtless. She also had some difficulty taking an accurate picture of my ovaries because of my belly.. she had to push down kind of hard to get as close to it as possible. She was able to get what she needed though and she wasn't rude at all about my size.

I think I answered all of your questions!


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## Jes (Aug 19, 2011)

You did, thatgirl, thank you! And I'm having the period to end all periods right now, so I'm going to make my appt. as soon as I figure out how the new insurance company I switched to at the end of the fiscal year runs itself.


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