Background: With the advent of hystroscopic surgery, abnormalities confined to the uterine cavity such as endometrial polyps, submucous myomas, uterine septae and synechia , were supposed to be treated effectively. Diagnostic hysteroscopy is the gold standard for investigating the intrauterine diseases as it allows for biopsy and removal of lesions.

Objectives: Forty premenopausal women without the history of normal vaginal delivery eligible for operative hysteroscopy were recruited. Patients were randomly assigned to receive 400 microgram vaginal misoprostol or no treatment, 10-12 hours before operative hysteroscopy. Main outcome measures were cervical width and duration of cervical dilatation.

Results: Patients using vaginal misoprostol in treatment group had significantly greater cervical width compared with control group patients (mean: 7.85 vs. 5.80, P = 0.024).

Conclusions: The mean duration of cervical dilatation in misoprostol group was significantly lower than that of control group (30.50 s vs. 52.75 s, P = 0.030). The frequency of complications was similar in treatment and control groups.