Heterotopic Pregnancy After In Vitro Fertilization and Embryo Transfer After Bilateral Total Salpingectomy/Tubal Ligation: Case Report and Literature Review

Heterotopic pregnancy is defined as the simultaneous occurrence of intrauterine and ectopic pregnancy, either of which may be single or multiple. It occurs in up to 1% of pregnancies after in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. This article reports 2 rare cases of heterotopic pregnancy after in vitro fertilization and presents a literature review. In the first case, a 28-year-old woman had previous laparoscopic bilateral total salpingectomy for a right tubal pregnancy and a left hydrosalpinx. However, she had ovarian heterotopic pregnancy after a third in vitro fertilization cycle. Emergency laparotomy was performed. The synchronous intrauterine pregnancy continued with no further complications and ended in the delivery of a singleton term pregnancy. The second case combined interstitial and intrauterine pregnancies after bilateral tubal ligation for hydrosalpinges followed by in vitro fertilization and frozen embryo transfer. The possibility of heterotopic pregnancy after bilateral total salpingectomy/tubal ligation, although extremely rare, should also be considered by gynecologists when they treat an in vitro fertilization patient even though an intrauterine pregnancy has been confirmed.