title: Chronic tubal ectopic pregnancy: a rare but challenging diagnosis.
abstract: A 34-year-old woman without any medical history presented to our hospital emergency unit with a history of 4 days of progressively increasing pain in the left iliac fossa, fever and vaginal bleeding for the past 3 weeks. Urine pregnancy test and serum bhCG were negative. CT scan showed a left pelvic mass compatible with a tubo-ovarian abscess. After transfer to our gynaecology unit, transvaginal ultrasound revealed an empty uterus with a heterogeneous mass in the left adnexal area. We performed a laparoscopy, which revealed an enlarged left haematosalpinx with firm adhesions to the surrounding organs, but no abscess. A total left salpingectomy was undertaken and the histopathological examination revealed the presence of chorionic villi, suggesting the diagnosis of chronic ectopic tubal pregnancy. The postoperative course was uneventful.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Drakopoulos
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pluchino
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yaron
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dällenbach
mesh_terms: D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D019160:Endosonography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D011271:Pregnancy, Ectopic; D011274:Pregnancy, Tubal / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D058994:Salpingectomy / Q000379:methods; D013246:Sterilization, Tubal; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014592:Uterine Hemorrhage / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery; D055815:Young Adult
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