Wavelength Academy · Pelvis
Pelvic pain in women: early pregnancy, torsion, bleeding cysts and pelvic sepsis
A woman with pelvic pain has a short list of time-critical diagnoses. Learn a systematic transabdominal pelvic scan, the criteria for a definite intrauterine pregnancy, the signs of ectopic pregnancy and haemoperitoneum, why Doppler misleads in ovarian torsion, and how to separate a bleeding cyst from a tubo-ovarian abscess.
- 1.25 hours CPD
- 5 lessons
- 4 cases
- 12-question assessment
- Pass mark 80%
- Free
What you will learn
- Perform a systematic transabdominal scan of the uterus, adnexa, pouch of Douglas and Morison's pouch
- Apply the criteria for a definite intrauterine pregnancy and separate a pseudosac from an early gestational sac
- Recognise the signs of ectopic pregnancy and haemoperitoneum, and act on them
- Recognise the features of ovarian torsion and explain why normal Doppler flow does not exclude it
- Separate a haemorrhagic cyst from a tubo-ovarian abscess, and refer appropriately
Lessons
- Context: one question at a time6 min
- Technique: the uterus, the adnexa and the pouch of Douglas10 min
- Early pregnancy: find the pregnancy, then look beyond the uterus14 min
- Ovarian torsion: follow the pedicle10 min
- Bleeding cysts and pelvic sepsis12 min
- Cases8 min
- Final assessment: 12 questions, pass mark 80%7 min
Who it is for
Emergency, acute and urgent care doctors, advanced clinical practitioners and physician associates who assess women with pelvic pain or bleeding in early pregnancy. It teaches transabdominal scanning only.
Your certificate
Pass the assessment and we email your certificate as a PDF: your name, the module, 1.25 hours of CPD, the date and a code anyone can check at thewavelength.co.uk/elearning/verify. Upload it to your e-portfolio with a short reflection. Wavelength issues the certificate itself. It is not accredited by an external body, so record the hours as self-directed CPD under your own college or regulator's rules. The certificate records completed learning. Sign-off to scan independently stays with your department.
About this module
Author. Dr Firas Abou-Auda, Consultant in Emergency Medicine and Course Director, Wavelength.
Published. October 2026. Next review. October 2028.
Conflicts of interest. Dr Firas Abou-Auda is Course Director of Wavelength, which runs paid ultrasound courses.
References
- Stein JC, et al. Emergency physician ultrasonography for evaluating patients at risk for ectopic pregnancy: a meta-analysis. Annals of Emergency Medicine. 2010;56:674-83.
- Moore C, Todd WM, O'Brien E, Lin H. Free fluid in Morison's pouch on bedside ultrasound predicts need for operative intervention in suspected ectopic pregnancy. Academic Emergency Medicine. 2007;14:755-8.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage: diagnosis and initial management (NG126). 2019, updated 2023.
- Lee EJ, et al. Diagnosis of ovarian torsion with color Doppler sonography: depiction of twisted vascular pedicle. Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine. 1998;17:83-9.
- Levine D, et al. Management of asymptomatic ovarian and other adnexal cysts imaged at US: Society of Radiologists in Ultrasound consensus conference statement. Radiology. 2010;256:943-54.
- British Association for Sexual Health and HIV. UK national guideline for the management of pelvic inflammatory disease. 2019.
- American College of Emergency Physicians. Ultrasound guidelines: emergency, point-of-care and clinical ultrasound guidelines in medicine. Annals of Emergency Medicine. 2023.