Well-woman exams are an essential part of maintaining long-term health and preventing illness before it occurs. Routine exams and screenings are typically once a year, depending on your age, health history, lifestyle, and other important issues. You and your health care provider can determine how often you need to be examined and screened for certain diseases and conditions. Each visit includes a full medical history, physical exam (general, breast and pelvic), and discussion of health maintenance strategies.

What is the difference between a pelvic exam and a pap smear?

A pelvic exam is a thorough exam by a gynecologist or another skilled provider including inspection of the external genitalia for lesions or abnormalities, a pap smear via a speculum exam, a bimanual exam to palpate uterine size as well as ovaries, and often times a rectal exam among other techniques as deemed necessary.

The current recommendations state a pap smear, which screens for cervical cancer, may be spaced out every 2 years in those 21 to 29 years of age and every 3 years in those 30 years and older with a history of 3 consecutive negative pap smears. Every female with ovaries needs a yearly pelvic exam to evaluate ovaries for cysts and/or masses. Unlike cervical cancer, there is no good screening test for ovarian cancer which will kill 15,500 women this year. Ovarian cancer accounts for more deaths than any other cancer death of the reproductive system including cervical cancer. One in 71 women will get ovarian cancer in their lifetime and 1 in 95 women will die of ovarian cancer.

The hectic schedules of today’s busy women have no room for things that slow you down. Heavy, painful periods or experiencing break through bleeding between cycles can disrupt your lifestyle. We have treatment options available to meet every woman’s unique needs.

Our Physicians have the knowledge and experience to understand that chronic pelvic pain can be attributed to a number of different causes. After an exam and any necessary testing, we will listen to your concerns, answer your questions and help you determine the treatment option best suited for your diagnosis.

When the result of a Pap smear is abnormal or when the cervix looks abnormal during the collection of a Pap smear a colposcopy may be ordered. During the procedure, a special microscope (called a colposcope) is used to look into the vagina and very closely at the cervix to determine what is causing the abnormal looking cervix or the abnormal Pap smear so that appropriate treatment can be given.

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With new advances in surgical techniques and the use of less sedating anesthetics, Lowcountry physicians feel proud to provide our patients with safer, less invasive, more cost effective alternatives to hospital-based surgeries.

Our in-office procedures offer you the comfort and convenience of an office visit while still providing the same knowledge, expertise and quality of care of a hospital surgery.

LowCountry Women’s Specialist has performed more than 1000 in-office procedures within the past 5 years so you can trust our experience and expertise.

Some of the In Office Surgical Procedures We Provide:
Essure: www.essure.com
NovaSure: www.novasure.com
HTA: www.GenesysHTA.com
NovaSure: www.novasure.com

Hysteroscopy

Hysteroscopy is used to diagnose or treat problems of the uterus. A hysteroscope is a thin, lighted telescope-like device. It is inserted through your vagina into your uterus. The hysteroscope transmits the image of your uterus onto a screen. Other instruments are used along with the hysteroscope for treatment.

Why is hysteroscopy done?
One of the most common uses for hysteroscopy is to find the cause of abnormal uterine bleeding. Abnormal bleeding can mean that a woman’s menstrual periods are heavier or longer than usual or occur less often or more often than normal. Bleeding between menstrual periods also is abnormal.

Hysteroscopy also is used in the following situations:
• Remove adhesions that may occur because of infection or from past surgery
• Diagnose the cause of repeated miscarriage when a woman has more than two miscarriages in a row
• Locate an intrauterine device
• Perform sterilization, in which the hysteroscope is used to place small implants into a woman’s fallopian tubes as a permanent form of birth control.

How is hysteroscopy performed?
Before the procedure, you may be given a medication to help you relax, or general anesthesia or local anesthesia may be used to block the pain. If you have general anesthesia, you will not be awake during the procedure.

Hysteroscopy can be done in a doctor’s office or at the hospital. It will be scheduled when you are not having your menstrual period. To make the procedure easier, your health care provider may dilate (open) your cervix before your hysteroscopy. You may be given medication that is inserted into the cervix, or special dilators may be used.

A speculum is first inserted into the vagina. The hysteroscope is then inserted and gently moved through the cervix into your uterus. Carbon dioxide gas or a fluid, such as saline (salt water), will be put through the hysteroscope into your uterus to expand it. The gas or fluid helps your health care provider see the lining more clearly. The amount of fluid used is carefully checked throughout the procedure. Your health care provider can view the lining of your uterus and the openings of the fallopian tubes by looking through the hysteroscope. If a biopsy or other procedure is done, small instruments will be passed through the hysteroscope.

What should I expect during recovery?
You should be able to go home shortly after the procedure. If you had general anesthesia, you may need to wait until its effects have worn off.

Night sweats, hot flashes, increased anxiety or irritability? These may be signs of menopause or perimenopase. While the average age is about 50, some women may experience symptoms as early as age 40 ar as late as age 55.

Your physician will discuss the emotional & physical effects of menopause and help you determine if the benefits of hormone replacement or other therapies are an option for you.

LowCountry Women’s Specialists provides complete obstetrical care that includes prenatal visits, the delivery and a postpartum evaluation. For your convenience, prenatal labs and routine ultrasounds are performed in the office.

Click here to find out more about My Pregnancy Services. 

Thanks to a breakthrough surgical technology, there is a new category of minimally invasive surgery for which you may be a candidate. It is an effective alternative to both open surgery and laparoscopy. Through the use of the da Vinci® Surgical System, surgeons are now able to offer a minimally invasive option for complex surgical procedures.

This state-of-the-art surgical technique allows our physicians to perform many kinds of major surgery with unmatched precision and control.

Potential Benefits of Robotic Surgery

• Shorter hospital stay. Faster return to normal daily activities. Less blood loss. Less pain. Less scarring. Fewer complications.
• With da Vinci, small incisions are used to introduce miniaturized wristed instruments and a high-definition 3D camera. Seated comfortably at the da Vinci console, your surgeon views a magnified, high-resolution 3D image of the surgical site.
• At the same time, state-of-the-art robotic and computer technologies scale, filter and seamlessly translate your surgeon’s hand movements into precise micro-movements of the da Vinci instruments.
• The System cannot be programmed, nor can it make decisions on its own. Rather, the da Vinci System requires that every surgical maneuver be performed with direct input from your surgeon.