The effects of copper contraceptive intrauterine device on the uterine blood flow: A prospective transvaginal Doppler study.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the hemodynamic changes by transvaginal color Doppler sonography (CDS) in the uterine vascular bed after the insertion of a contraceptive intrauterine device (CIUD) and to investigate whether those CDS findings could predict potential side effects, such as dysmenorrhea and abnormal bleeding.

METHOD: Pulsatility index (PI), resistance index, and systole/diastole ratio (S/D) were measured in the uterine artery and its myometrial branches on 28 patients before and after the insertion of copper IUD, and a correlation with dysmenorrhea and abnormal bleeding was investigated.

RESULT: PI and S/D values in the uterine artery increased significantly after the insertion of the CIUD (p < 0.05). Patients with increased bleeding scores after insertion of CIUD had significantly lower uterine artery PI compared with those without increased bleeding scores (p < 0.05). No statistically significant difference was detected in the Doppler flow parameters regarding dysmenorrhea scores.

CONCLUSION

Low uterine artery PI values recorded in the early phase of the menstrual cycle in patients with a CIUD were associated with an increased bleeding risk.