Combined chitosan and Dan-shen injection for long-term tubal patency in fallopian tube recanalization for infertility

To prospectively study the efficacy of different anti-adhesion agents for the prevention of tubal obstruction after recanalization, this trial was approved by our hospital ethics committee. Four hundred patients with fallopian tube obstruction were randomly assigned to four groups. The control group underwent recanalization alone, whereas the other groups were injected with chitosan, Dan-shen, or combined chitosan and Dan-shen after recanalization. The tubal patency rate in all four groups was recorded after 12 day, 3 months, and 12 months. The pregnancy rates were noted after 12 months. The recanalization rates after 1 day in the control, chitosan, Dan-shen, and combined chitosan and Dan-shen groups were 94.1, 97.1, 96.5, and 98.2%, respectively (p = 0.18, p > 0.05). The rates of tubal patency after 3 months were significantly higher in the combined chitosan and Dan-shen (96.5%), chitosan (88%), and Dan-shen (85.2%) groups compared with the control group (73.9%) (p = 0.0001, p < 0.05). The recanalization rate and intrauterine pregnancy rate after 12 months was significantly higher in the combined chitosan and Dan-shen group (93.8 and 63.9%, respectively) compared with the other groups (control 39 and 30.6%, chitosan 78.4 and 46.9%, and Dan-shen 77.3 and 43.3%) (p = 0.0029 and p = 0.0001, p < 0.05). Chitosan, Dan-shen, or a combination of the two compounds could be effective for preventing tubal obstruction after interventional recanalization, possibly increasing the rate of pregnancy in affected women. The combined chitosan and Dan-shen injection has unique advantages in the interventional recanalization of obstructed fallopian tubes.