Radionuclide hysterosalpingography does not distinguish between fertile women, before tubal sterilization, and infertile women.

recommended that this method, called radionuclide hystero-S-171 76 Stockholm, Sweden salpingography (RN-HSG), could be used as a complementaryThe female genital tract is capable of active transport that procedure in infertility investigations to demonstrate the func-can be demonstrated by serial scintigraphic imaging over tional capacity of the oviducts (Brundin et al., 1989, 1993).Several authors have considered RN-HSG to be the methodtime (radionuclide hysterosalpingography; RN-HSG).of choice to investigate a lack of active tubal transport capacity.RN-HSG has been suggested to offer a more functionalTransport of radionuclide and spermatozoa has been suggestedapproach to tubal infertility diagnosis than conventionalto be dependent on the same tubal mechanism (Venter andpatency tests. However, before RN-HSG can be recom-Iturralde, 1979; McCalley et al., 1985; Stone et al., 1985;mended as a routine method, its reliability in showingBecker et al., 1988). For that reason, RN-HSG has beenactive transport in fertile women must be demonstrated.considered to be a suitable method for the investigation ofTherefore we compared RN-HSG in two groups: 38 fertiletubal damage, even when routine HSG and/or laparoscopywomen before tubal sterilization and 38 women under-with chromopertubation have revealed normal conditions.going infertility work-up. Tubal transport demonstratedMuch evidence supports the fact that active transport, asby RN-HSG was comparably distributed in both groupsdemonstrated by RN-HSG, is intraluminal and not lymphaticand classified as bilateral (17 versus 19), unilateral (12or haematogenous (Egli and Newton, 1961; Iturralde andversus 7) or no transport (6 versus 9). In each group threeVenter, 1981; Steck et al., 1991). However, few efforts haveRN-HSG images were not interpretable. There was nobeen made to evaluate RN-HSG in fertile women. So far onlyassociation between patency test results and RN-HSG ina small number of women with active tubal transport havethe two groups. Our data suggest that RN-HSG in itsbeen studied (Stone et al., 1985; Becker et al., 1988; Steckpresent form does not seem to be a reliable method foret al., 1991). To prove the reliability of RN-HSG, it is of vitalinfertility work-up. Because RN-HSG and patency testsimportance to show whether there is a difference in activemost probably measure different properties of the genitaltransportcapacity infertile comparedwith infertilewomen. Thetract, the phenomenon of active particle transportationobjective of the present prospectivestudy was to investigate thisshould be studied further to enable the development of adifference.reliable tool for the investigation of tubal function.Keywords:Fallopiantube/radionuclidehysterosalpingography/tubal infertility Materials and methods