How many laparoscopy's have people had before endometriosis was diagnosed?

[Katt]

I have had 2 laparoscopy's so far. The first consultant said I had lots of adhesions and some suspicious looking patches! The second lap 2 years later with a different consultant said she couldn't find anything to explain my pain! Also do you think it makes a difference in which part of the menstrual cycle you have the lap and whether having hormone treatment before a lap could affect the results? Thanks for reading x

[Impatient]

I had a lap surgery for something else in my tummy about 10 years before the lap-turned-laparotomy that discovered the disaster area within. To my knowledge that 1st lap did not spot endo..though I was in my 30s and it certainly had been felt long before then.

Perhaps they were concentrating on the task at hand and the surgeon was a gastro-enterologist so maybe didn't know what endo looked like even if he had seen it.

By the time of the endo op 10 years later..it was everywhere and very obviously everywhere.

[lm330]

hi there, im sorry to hear you are having a tough time. ive had two laps and both times they found endo. I think that its so small its hard to find it. what can really help is if you can tell your consutlant exactly where your pain is and direct them to look there. give them as much detail on your symptoms as you can even if you think its irrelevant. if you have adhesions then endo is a strong contender for the underlying culprit. another way for them to know if its endo is to try something like prostrap and see if it reduces your pain. this is what my consultant said to me as im convinced that my endo is back and he wont do another lap. he said that if you take prostrap and it works then its endo and THEN he would do anotehr lap. so maybe try that? personally i dont want to use prostrap so im stuck with no forward plan right now. but perhaps you could look into it. hope it works out xxx

[lm330 in reply to lm330]

p.s. iin terms of the hormone treatment i would have thought this will reduce the growths so of course they cant find it so easily. however when i had my second one it was after 2 years of hormonal treatment, and they found lots, so if there is enough of it i dont think it will stop them finding it.

[Apple3]

I think it definitely depends on the surgeon and their knowledge unfortunately. Endo is a specialist area!

I had endo diagnosed in 1996 and nothing was suggested but to live with in and I did again, unfortunatley. Don't be put off persuing a proper diagnosis. I wish I had stuck up for myself before it took hold.

Consequently after further problems, including removing a lump of endo inside my abdominal wall in 2003 that was calcified, and further scans for pain, I was booked in to have an ovary removed, keyhole. After the op, the gynae consultant said they pulled out of the op as my abdomen was full of endometriosis, adhesions and huge chocolate cysts on both overies. He said I needed a hysterectomy but with gynaecologist to deal with the hysterectomy and another general surgeon to cut through all the other stuff (endo and adhestions). So two consultants specialising in different areas.

I would think if you are on your cycle, these endo patches should bleed and be easy to see, both I am not sure.

Good luck.