Surgery Overview

Tubal ligation is a surgical procedure in which your fallopian tubes are blocked, cut, or sealed. It's done to prevent your eggs from traveling from your ovaries into the fallopian tubes, where they could be fertilized by a sperm.

Tubal ligation is a highly effective form of birth control that is almost always permanent. Reversing it by reattaching the cut or sealed ends of the tubes is a major surgery.

The success of surgery to reverse a tubal ligation depends on:

• The method that was originally used. Clips and rings (such as the Hulka clip, Filshie clip, and Falope rings) are successfully reversed the most often. Electrocautery is least likely to be successfully reversed.
• Time. The less time that has passed since the tubal ligation was done, the more likely it is that the reversal surgery will be successful.
• Condition of the tubes. The more the tubes are damaged, the less likely the reversal is to be successful.

After tubal ligation reversal, you will have a higher-than-average risk of a fertilized egg implanting in the fallopian tube (ectopic pregnancy) rather than in the uterus. This can become a life-threatening emergency.

There is no guarantee that you will be able to become pregnant after having the reversal.