HYSTEROSCOPY AND DILATATION AND CURETTAGE (D&C)

Hysteroscopy is the examination of the inside of the uterus using a small lighted mini telescope - a hysteroscope. The hysteroscope is inserted through the vagina and dilated cervix into the uterus, usually under a local anaesthetic (you are awake, but the area being investigated is numb).

The procedure can be used to view abnormalities and take tissue samples, or can be combined with other treatments such as dilatation and curettage, commonly known as a D&C, in which a small spoon-like instrument with a long handle (a curette) is used to scrape the lining of the uterus to remove retained tissue (for instance, following an incomplete miscarriage or after childbirth where placenta remains in the uterus), or a sample for analysis.

D&Cs can be carried out under a general or local anaesthetic.