It doesn’t matter if she’s just dating, or her kids are already done with diapers. Every woman wants to know that her contraception works. With an IUD, your patient is relying on you for accurate and precise placement.

“It’s not a difficult procedure, but it’s a blind procedure for many clinicians,” said Lisbet Hanson, M.D., of Medical Director of Sentaras Women’s Health Program at Virginia Beach General Hospital. “If you don’t do an ultrasound to see if the IUD is in the correct position, you don’t really know for sure.”

While there are no specific guidelines that say scanning is necessary for IUD insertion, transvaginal 3D ultrasound can simplify the procedure and minimize risk. Even the most experienced physicians can encounter complications during the insertion process—including expulsion, displacement, embedment and perforation. In fact, research shows uterine perforation occurs about once in every 1,000 insertions.²

Bernard Benoit, M.D. of Princess Grace Hospital in Monaco insists on performing an ultrasound before every IUD procedure. He relies on 3D ultrasound for his initial assessment because it provides views that aren’t possible with 2D imaging.

“With 3D, you can move to that coronal plane view and see if there are any contraindications. You can see the exact shape of the uterine cavity. You can also measure the volume and the length of the uterine cavity,” Benoit explained.

This information is especially important when you consider research that shows most conventional IUDs are too big to fit inside the uterine cavities of many women.^2-5

“I’ve seen a lot of IUDs in the wrong position and many times the uterine cavity was just too small,” Benoit said. “With 3D ultrasound, I can also see if the cavity is too big or if there is a deformity—and that can affect which intrauterine device I choose.”

Both Dr. Benoit and Dr. Hanson depend on VolusonTM ultrasound technology from GE Healthcare to be their guide. The high-resolution images show the endometrium in extraordinary detail. 3D imaging with OmniView allows for greater confidence in evaluating the entire uterine cavity for the best possible outcomes. The advanced ultrasound tools can also empower patients.

“There are a lot of women who think their IUD isn’t doing anything because they can’t see it or feel it—and that makes them worry,” Hanson noted. “I like to show my patients the detailed ultrasound images so they can see their IUD is in the right place, and that makes them feel a lot more confident about their birth control.”