This is the short version of my story. I can get all the exact dates if needed. I have primary biliary cirrhosis. This is a slow progressing liver disease that leads to liver failure/transplant. I was diagnosed about 11 years ago. I am currently on the transplant waiting list at Piedmont Hospital.
About 2 years ago I underwent the Essure procedure. In December of 2012 I was having a procedure done- esophagus varices banding. After the procedure, my primary doctor called and told me my pretesting blood work/urinalysis came up positive for pregnancy. I have stage 4 liver disease, so after two obgyn appointments and discussion with my transplant doctor I underwent a dilation and curettage on Christmas eve.
At my first obgyn appointment, I was very specific when I called and made the appointment. I had a transvaginal ultrasound and the tech said she could not find one of the coils placed but the other one was still in my tubes.
After my dilation and curettage on December 24, 2012, I was still having some complications with bleeding for over 3 months. I was worried still where the other coil was in my body, etc. I work for a surgeon who recommended an obgyn that is close to where I live and I have met her before. She was not on my insurance previously but was as of January 2013.
After a long discussion with her and of course my transplant team doctor we decided it was best to do a hysterectomy and take out my ovaries, etc. There were a few reasons for this- my transplant medicine immune suppressants puts me at a higher risk for ovarian cancer. I was still bleeding a lot for the last three months. I wanted the coils out of my body especially if they were in my abdomen somewhere.
At this point I still did not have any birth control. I did not want my spouse to undergo a vasectomy because my liver transplant surgery will take 3-8 hours. Reality is that if for some reason I don’t make it through that he could still have a family with someone later. I had a Mirena IUD placed prior to the Essure procedure but I had complications from it and it perforated my uterus so it was removed.
I cannot take any regular birth control because the medicine is filtered through my liver. Taking out my ovaries also meant that at 39 years old my body would kick into menopause. They cannot give me any HRT (hormone replacement therapy) because it filters through my liver.
My current obgyn said she would never place any Essure coils in any patient. She did a few of them and had problems with the device and found fault in the dye test.
I asked the Essure rep and sent an email to the company prior to the placement to see if I could have an MRI after and the email and the rep both said yes because the coils are made of titanium. Later I found out that it also has nickel in it, which is magnetic. I have had two MRI’s since the coils have been placed. I’m not sure if this had anything to do with the other coil moving but I could get the images / disc and see where the coils were in the first picture and then the last if needed.