Spotting during transvaginal ultrasound
18 April, 2023
Question:I had to empty my bladder before a transvaginal ultrasound and to my surprise I saw some blood in the toilet water. I did NOT look at the toilet paper. The technician did the ultrasound and said I was spotting. She said it’s common with the procedure, but I saw the spots in the toilet before. I did not look at the wand or any disposable paper during the exam. Am I in niddah since I saw the blood ahead of the exam and she said out loud that I’m spotting?
FYI, I have a Mirena IUD and last week I was lightly spotting for 3–4 days. I don’t get a period. Just the spotting. Thank you.
Answer:Assuming you did not actually see the blood exit your body, blood found in the toilet bowl may be disregarded and does not render you niddah as it is a surface that is not susceptible to tum’ah.
The fact that the technician said you are spotting does not indicate you are niddah since it’s possible the spotting she saw was caused by vaginal/cervical trauma from the ultrasound wand.
You should continue taking precautions against becoming niddah from any further staining by wearing colored underwear and waiting a few seconds after urinating before wiping.
Please see our articles on stains and toilet paper for more details, and feel free to get back to us with any further questions.
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