What is the bicornuate uterus?

During the embryonic development of a girl the internal genital organs, the upper part of the vagina, the womb or uterus, the fallopian tubes and the ovaries are formed. In the second month of gestation, the Müllerian ducts, which are two tubular structures that later move towards the center of the embryo and fuse, giving rise to the. If this shift or merge does not occur correctly the internal genitalia do not form well.

The fusion alterations of Müllerian ducts can produce different pathologies depending on at what level the lack of fusion occurs. Duplicity can occur in all central organs that derive from the Müllerian ducts: uterus, cervix and upper vaginal third, or only part of them.

At bicornuate uterus The alteration of the Müllerian ducts occurs at the uterine level and involves a cleft in the center of the uterus. This means that the uterine cavity is of normal shape in its lower part, but, the upper part of the uterus divides in two abnormally. When the cleft reaches the bottom of the uterine cavity, that is, to the cervix, it is a complete bicornuate uterus

What are the symptoms of a uterine malformation?

Uterine malformations, if they are not accompanied by vaginal septa, do not usually give symptoms until the desire to have children appears. Women who, in addition to uterine malformations, have vaginal malformations, have more discomfort during sexual intercourse or difficulty or inability to insert vaginal tampons or. If there is no vaginal malformation, the patient does not present any clinic and bicornuate uterus is usually a chance finding in a

Women with a bicornuate uterus have a higher rate of miscarriages, being a cause of repeat abortions. Also, they have a higher rate of premature births for a matter of space since the bicorne matrix presents less space for the fetus and, therefore, uterine contractions and deliveries occur earlier. In women with a partial bicornuate womb there is a higher frequency of fetuses that are placed in breech position since it is more comfortable for them.

Diagnosis of the bicornuate uterus

In general, the bicornuate uterus is diagnosed by ultrasound, in some cases in the ultrasound of the beginning of pregnancy in a woman who had not been previously diagnosed with any uterine malformation. Specialist in gynecology and obstetrics