Article Text
Abstract
The definition of a chronic ectopic pregnancy (CEP) is poorly defined in the literature and making a timely diagnosis can be incredibly challenging. This is primarily due to its broad range of clinical presentations and conflicting biochemical and sonographic results. Often, CEPs are mistaken for ovarian malignancies, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), uterine fibroids or endometriosis, therefore, leading to a delayed diagnosis. We present a case report of a woman who was initially misdiagnosed with PID and then later preoperatively diagnosed with a CEP. This case particularly highlights the diagnostic dilemma posed by CEPs and raises awareness of the key clinical symptoms, biochemical and sonographic investigations which in combination can contribute towards making a timely preoperative diagnosis.
- obstetrics
- gynaecology and fertility
- pregnancy
Statistics from Altmetric.com
Footnotes
Contributors HS: responsible for primarily writing the article, formatting it for submission and obtaining consent from patient. OD: responsible for helping to write the article and liaising with the pathology department. TA: responsible for providing histology pictures and writing about the histology section in the article. GP: responsible for overseeing the overall quality of the article and advising on the final diagnosis.
Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Competing interests None declared.
Patient consent for publication Obtained.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.