Abstract

Aim: The aim of the present study was to determine a cutoff level for a decrease in human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) on postoperative day 1 to confirm intrauterine pregnancy (IUP) in patients who have undergone dilatation and curettage (D/C) with a presumptive diagnosis of nonviable pregnancy of unknown location (PUL).
Material and Methods: This retrospective case–control study included patients who underwent D/C with a presumptive diagnosis of failing PUL between January 2010 and June 2015. Patients with failing PUL or confirmed to have an IUP were placed in Group 1 (n=164) and patients subsequently diagnosed with ectopic pregnancy were placed in Group 2 (n=19).In all patients, serum hCG levels were obtained on the day of D/C and on the following day.
Results: The decline in serum hCG percentage on day 1 after D/C was 54.2% in patients with failing PUL/abortion and 14.3% in patients with ectopic pregnancy (p

Key words: Dilatation and curettage; ectopic pregnancy; human chorionic gonadotropin