What are the fallopian tubes? The tubes are a pair of long, thin, curved, muscular ducts that serve as a site for the union of the egg and sperm and as a channel for the transport of the fertilized egg. They are located inside the upper edge of the broad ligament, connected to the horn of the uterus medially and free at the outer end in the shape of an umbrella, close to the ovaries, with a total length of 8-14 cm. We must be clear that a woman needs at least four basic conditions to get pregnant: first, normal semen from the male partner; second, normal ovulation from the female partner; third, good uterine conditions; and fourth, open fallopian tubes. When you have been preparing for pregnancy for a long time (no contraception after marriage and more than one year) without (re)pregnancy, and the male partner’s semen routine, female partner’s sex hormone test and ultrasound monitoring ovulation are normal, then you should consider whether your fallopian tubes are open or not, then we suggest you to do a tubal imaging test. How much do you know about tubal imaging? HSG is performed by injecting contrast into the uterine cavity and the fallopian tubes through a catheter, performing X-ray fluoroscopy and radiographs. It is an essential test for infertility patients because it can not only visualize the patency of the fallopian tubes, their morphology and the site of obstruction, but also observe the size and morphology of the uterine cavity, the presence of malformations and the presence of uterine adhesions or occupational lesions. Doctor, I had a tubal lavage (fluidization), do I still need to have an imaging test? The test is performed by injecting fluid into the uterine cavity through a catheter to determine the patency of the fallopian tubes based on the resistance to fluid injection, the amount of fluid injected and the patient’s sensation. Therefore, it is recommended that patients who have undergone tubal lavage (lavage) and are not pregnant should undergo tubal imaging. When can I have a tubal imaging test, how long does it take and does it hurt? The tubal imaging should be done within 3-7 days after menstruation (no sexual intercourse during the menstrual cycle when the imaging is done). The whole procedure is usually completed within half an hour. During this procedure, the doctor injects the contrast agent into the uterine cavity through the patient’s vagina without any wound, therefore, the patient may only feel the lower abdomen swelling (like the feeling of menstruation), and it is not as painful as you may think. After surgery, oral antibiotics are usually required for 3 days to prevent infection. Sexual intercourse, bathing and vaginal douching are prohibited for 2 weeks. A small amount of vaginal bleeding may occur within 1 week after surgery, do not be nervous, it is normal. How long does it take to have a baby after the contrast? Many patients worry that the contrast agent will stay in the body for a long time. With the continuous progress of technology, the drugs are also being updated. “Iodine water is easily absorbed and stays in the body for a very short time, and the incidence of allergies is greatly reduced. In addition, many patients are concerned that receiving X-rays may affect the development of the embryo. According to numerous studies in the literature, eggs and sperm are not sensitive to X-rays, and the dose of X-rays in a single tubal imaging is very small and negligible. Therefore, the next menstrual cycle after the completion of the tubal angiogram, you can start to prepare for pregnancy. In addition, tubal imaging has a certain therapeutic effect. For patients with mild tubal obstruction or adhesion, the impact of the pushing contrast agent during the tubal imaging has a certain unblocking effect on the fallopian tubes, so the pregnancy rate will be increased in the next menstrual cycle. Therefore, for patients with patent, patent but not patent or poorly patent fallopian tubes, in the next menstrual cycle after the tubal imaging is done Patients are encouraged to actively prepare for pregnancy.