How long does endometrial scratch take to work for implantation failure?

During an endometrial scratch, a clinician passes a narrow instrument through the cervix to make a small sample or irritation in the uterine lining. Cramping and light bleeding can follow. The lining then heals, but the procedure does not directly place or change an embryo.

Evidence about whether scratching improves implantation is mixed, so the timing and value of the procedure depend on your fertility history and clinic plan. It cannot guarantee that a later embryo transfer will implant.

Confirm whether the scratch is planned before the transfer cycle and how the clinic wants you to report bleeding or pain. Use only the medicines recommended by the care team, attend follow-up, and ask when sexual activity, tampons or swimming can resume. Keep a record of symptoms so the clinician can distinguish expected recovery from a problem.

Call the clinic for bleeding heavier than expected, pain that is severe or worsening, fever, faintness or foul-smelling discharge. Seek urgent care if you become very unwell or develop sudden severe pelvic pain.

Ask why scratching is being offered, when it should occur in relation to transfer, what recovery symptoms are expected, and how another implantation failure would change the plan.