Determining the best catheter for sonohysterography

Objective: To compare the characteristics of six different catheters for pe rforming sonohysterography (SHG) to identify those that offer the best comp romise between reliability, tolerability, and cost. Design: Prospective study. Setting: University hospital. Patient(s): Six hundred ten women undergoing SHG. Intervention(s): We performed SHG with six different types of catheters: Fo leycath (Wembley Rubber Products, Sepang, Malaysia), Hysca Hysterosalpingog raphy Catheter (GTA International Medical Devices S.A., La Caleta D.N., Dom inican Republic), H/S Catheter Set (Ackrad Laboratories, Cranford, NJ), PBN Balloon Hystero-Salpingography Catheter (PBN Medicals, Stenloese, Denmark) , ZUI-2.0 Catheter (Zinnanti Uterine Injection; BEI Medical System Internat ional, Gembloux, Belgium), and Goldstein Catheter (Cook, Spencer, IN). Main Outcome Measure(s): We assessed the reliability, the physician's ease of use, the time requested for the insertion of the catheter, the volume of contrast medium used, the tolerability for the patients, and the cost of t he catheters. Result(s): In 568 (93%) correctly performed procedures, no statistically si gnificant differences were found among the catheters. The Foleyeath was the most difficult for the physician to use and required significantly more ti me to position correctly. The Goldstein catheter was the best tolerated by the patients. The Foleycath was the cheapest whereas the PBN Balloon was th e most expensive. Conclusion(s): The choice of the catheter must be targeted to achieving a g ood balance between tolerability for the patients, efficacy, cost, and the personal preference of the operator. (Fertil Steril(R) 2001;76:605-9. (C) 2 001 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine).