Home > Encyclopedia of Surgery > Salpingostomy

Definition

A salpingostomy is a surgical incision into a fallopian tube. This procedure may be done to repair a damaged tube or to remove an ectopic pregnancy (one that occurs outside of the uterus).

Purpose

The fallopian tubes are the structures that carry a mature egg from the ovaries to the uterus. These tubes, which are about 4 in (10 cm) long and 0.2 in (0.5 cm) in diameter, are found on the upper outer sides of the uterus, and open into the uterus through small channels. It is within the fallopian tubes that fertilization, the joining of an egg and a sperm, takes place.

During a normal pregnancy, the fertilized egg passes from the fallopian tubes into the uterus and then implants into the lining of the uterus. If the fertilized egg implants anywhere outside of the uterus, it is...