Smaller Tubal Reversal

Nearly 700,000 women have their tubes tied when they decide they don't want any more children. But, thousands change their minds. One option is a tubal reversal, which can be expensive and involve a long recovery. Now a modified version of the traditional procedure reduces recovery and the price tag.

When Debbie Denamen gave birth to her son, Jordan, she thought he would be her first and last child. So, she had her tubes tied.

"We discussed ahead of time that one child was going to be enough for us. We were blessed with that," said Debbie Denamen.

But when he turned three, Debbie and her husband had a change of heart and decided to reverse the procedure.

"Statistically, 15,000 women have tubal reversals in the United States per year," said Edward Zbella, M.D.

Instead of making a seven to ten inch incision, like most tubal reversals, reproductive surgeon Edward Zbella uses a much smaller opening.

"The advantage of this is that it's done on an outpatient basis. So, it significantly decreases the cost to the patient as well as the recovery time," said Edward Zbella, M.D.

Doctor Zbella makes a bikini line abdominal incision about two inches long. He locates the tubes, removes the scarred tissue and reconnects the two open ends.

"We typically tell the patients we'd like them to take a week off. But again, the majority of our patients return to work three or four days after the procedure," said Edward Zbella, M.D.

Traditional surgery requires three to four weeks recovery and can cost about $15,000. Doctor Zbella charges about $5,000.

It took a year and a half for Debbie to get pregnant. But she believes little Bria was a gift worth waiting for. Doctor Zbella says the success rate of pregnancy after a tubal reversal is the same as in vitro - another method increasing in popularity to bypass the blocked tube. Benefits of the reversal are that it costs less and there is less risk of multiple pregnancies.