Frequently Asked Questions

Tubal reversal surgery works! View messages from previous patients about their tubal reversal surgeries:
 Testimonials and Patient Satisfaction Messages .

Want to know if your tubal ligation type can be successfully reversed?

Visit the following links:

Burned tube reversal testimonials

Essure reversal testimonials

Cut, tied, and burned tubal reversal testimonials

Tubal clip reversal testimonials

Tubal ring reversal testimonials

Fimbriectomy reversal testimonials

Endometrial ablation pregnancy testimonials

If you are having periods then you are ovulating (releasing eggs). If you are ovulating, you can become pregnant. Simple.

For more detailed information on the cost of reversal surgery visit the following links:

• Tubal Reversal Cost 
• Cost of Essure Reversal/Removal
• Cost of Vasectomy Reversal

The fees discussed in the above links cover your entire surgery costs. There are no other hidden costs. No additional medical, surgical, facility, or anesthesia fees are involved.

Patients are responsible for these additional costs:

1. Pre-operative testing. We only require a complete blood count (CBC). Depending on your medical history other test may be required. Most patients only need a CBC. Often your health insurance will pay for these tests. If you pay out-of-pocket for a CBC the cost should be less than $100.
2. Medications. You will be given prescriptions for a narcotic medication and nausea medication to take after surgery. Your health insurance should pay for these. If you pay out-of-pocket, the cost of these medications is less than $50.
3. Travel. Patients are responsible for the cost of travel to our center in Raleigh, North Carolina. You must also bring a responsible adult over the age of 18 with you for surgery.
4. Meals/lodging. You are responsible for the cost of your meals and lodging. Our patients are required to stay at specially selected hotels that are each within 1/2 mile of our office. Patients stay two (2) nights in these hotels. There is a grocery store, several pharmacies, and many restaurants within walking distances of many of the hotels.

More information on travel costs here: Where To Stay And Transportation

More information on hotel costs here: Hotels for Dr Monteith’s patients

More information about nearby restaurants here: Fun Things To Do

If you choose to have our optional screening laparoscopy procedure, then you would receive a refund of your surgical fee if your tubes cannot be repaired.

More information: Screening laparoscopy and tubal reversal refund

Approximately 2 out of every 3 patients will become pregnant after tubal ligation reversal and 2 out of every 5 patients will become pregnant after Essure reversal.

More information: Chances of pregnancy success after tubal reversal

You are not too old for surgery if you are 35 years of age or older.

Although being over 35 is considered Advanced Maternal Age (AMA), AMA status has nothing to do with the ability to become pregnant after tubal reversal.

Although natural pregnancy is more difficult to obtain with increasing age, pregnancy can occur at almost any age if you are having regular periods. The ability to become pregnant does not decline dramatically until after the age 43.

Our oldest patient to become naturally pregnant was 48. Our oldest tubal reversal surgery patient was 52. We do not have an age limit but do require you be having regular periods and be a safe outpatient surgery candidate.

More information: Tubal reversal and age

We allow our patients to make personal choices about their fertility.

The time since your tubal ligation is not important unless the passage of time makes you significantly older. The ability to become pregnant does decrease with age and this becomes more noticeable after the age of 42. Our oldest patient to become naturally pregnant was 48 years of age.

The health of your fallopian tubes does not change over time after your tubal ligation.

We do not require fertility testing before having tubal reversal at our center.

1. Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) testing. We do not require FSH testing. FSH testing only predicts who is more likely or less likely to become pregnant with in-vitro fertilization. The FSH test does not predict who will or will not become naturally pregnant. Age of the female is a much better predictor than FSH of the possibility of natural pregnancy after tubal ligation reversal.
2. Semen analysis. If your partner has never fathered children the chance of having an abnormal sperm count is less than 5% to 8%. It is reasonable to consider a semen analysis if your partner has not fathered children but we do not require it. If your partner has fathered children and does not have any significant medical illnesses, anabolic steroid hormone use, or urological conditions then a semen analysis will often be normal.

We allow our patients to make personal choices about fertility testing and what they feel is best for their situation.

Tubal reversal and Essure reversal, no matter what the reason, is considered an elective, non-life threatening procedure. Neither private health insurance nor Medicaid/Medicare will pay for reversal no matter the reason.

Health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid will not pay for reversal even if you are having symptoms.

We do participate health care financing. We work with several financing companies offering medical financing or direct patient loans. Financing can be a great way to have surgery now and pay later.

For more information: Reversal surgery financing

We do offer reduced surgery prices; however, reduced prices are only offered to our Reversal Prepayment Account holders when these surgery dates are available. Prepayment Account holders are notified privately by email about reduced price surgeries. Visit the link to the question below to get more information about reduced surgery prices.

More information: Reduced price reversal surgeries

We ask that you do not call our office to inquire about reduced price surgeries.

We do have a prepayment plan. This is a great way to save towards reversal surgery and avoid the high interest rates charged by health care financing plans (which is one reason we maintain a prepayment plan).

More information: Tubal reversal prepayment plan

We encourage you to send us your tubal ligation records before scheduling surgery using our Fax Cover Sheet.

Some patients will be unable to obtain their records. If you are unable to obtain your sterilization records you have two options:

• You can schedule surgery without records. Many patients will choose this option because they are aware we can reverse most tubal ligations.
• You can choose a optional screening laparoscopy. This procedure allows us to look directly at your tubes with a small camera. If the tubes are not repairable your surgery time is much shorter, your incision is much smaller, and you will receive a significant refund of your surgery fee if both tubes are not repairable.

You can obtain a Medical Records Release Form from our website and you are encouraged to call if you have questions about how to send your records for evaluation. We do not charge to evaluate your tubal ligation records.

More information: Advice on sending records to Dr Monteith

We do not require an in-office consultation before surgery.

Most of our patients travel from other states. We have designed our reversal surgery so patients can schedule by phone and using email/fax communication. Patients will then travel to see us and have their consultation, surgery, and post-operative consultation over the course of two (2) nights and three (3) days.

If you would like a pre-operative doctor consultation by phone or in the office then we can arrange that for you for an additional fee.

For more information about our Free Consultation and our Physician Consultation before surgery: Tubal reversal consultation

We perform reversal surgery using general anesthesia. In our experience, general anesthesia provided with a laryngeal mask provides the best tubal reversal anesthesia. We do not perform tubal reversal using spinal or epidural anesthesia.

For more information: Best anesthesia for tubal reversal surgery

All of our surgeries are performed in our AAAHC accredited operating room located directly inside our office. This operating room was specially designed for patient safety and sterilization reversal surgery only. Patient privacy, comfort, and safety were the primary design considerations for our operating room.

For more information about our facility: Our facility

We are located in Raleigh, North Carolina. We are within driving distance of most major East Coast cities. Our airport is Raleigh/Durham International airport (RDU) and there are many direct flights into RDU. Our office is located approximately 10 minutes from RDU.

Although North Carolina may seem like a long distance away, most patients will find having reversal surgery with Dr. Monteith more affordable and more successful than having surgery in their home town.

Our phone number is at the top right of every web page. Our phone and fax number are listed on our Contact page.

We only have one office in Raleigh, North Carolina. Our center is AAAHC accredited, devoted exclusively to sterilization reversal surgery, and all surgeries are outpatient procedures. This allows us to keep the cost of surgery affordable.

Due to our specialization in sterilization reversal, most patients will find it more affordable to travel to us for sterilization reversal surgery rather than have reversal surgery in their area with doctors who may not perform as many procedures as we do and may perform these surgeries in a hospital with an overnight stay.

If you would like a free tubal reversal surgery then you should consider entering our free tubal reversal surgery giveaway.

For more information: Free Tubal Reversal Surgery Contest

We are unable to routinely provide free surgery or pro-bono surgery.

Unfortunately, we have many patients who have had sterilization procedures while in abusive relationships, against their will, have lost partners or children, or had other tragic events occur after their sterilization procedures. We do our best to help them by providing an affordable surgery in a supportive environment at a center with high surgical standards but we can not routinely offer free or pro-bono surgeries.

All patients must stay at one of our our specially selected hotels. Our hotel policy exists for patient safety and helps us insure appointments and surgeries will start on time with a minimal amount of waiting for all patients.

More information: Recommended hotels for surgery patients

We encourage our patients to start trying to become pregnant as soon as they feel comfortable enough to do so. You will not cause a complication by getting pregnant too soon.

Most patients will become pregnant within 12 months of surgery.

Reversal surgery is very safe when performed at our specialty center. The surgery is so safe we can perform the surgery as an outpatient procedure under general anesthesia.

More information: Risks of reversal surgery

Multiple C-sections can increase the risk of having scar tissue that can make reversal more difficulty. Most patients will not have significant scar tissue at the time of surgery. Dr. Monteith uses an advanced technique of Laparoscopic Needle Localization to help avoid scar tissue and increase the chance of successfully repairing tubes in patients who are at high risk for scar tissue.

More information:  Laparoscopic Needle Localization

If you only have one fallopian tube repaired then your chances of pregnancy are just as good as if you have both tubes repaired; however, it may take twice as long to become pregnant.

If you only have one tube repaired the cost for surgery is the same as if both tubes were repaired.

The hardest part about having reversal surgery is making the personal decision reversal surgery is the best choice for you. After this first decision …the rest is all down hill!

For more detailed information: Getting started: Scheduling reversal surgery

To get started we recommend you follow these three simple steps:

• Obtain your tubal ligation operative report and pathology report (if available)
• Send your records to us for a free review
• Call us with any questions