Does the fimbria have an embryologic origin distinct from that of the rest of the fallopian tube?
OBJECTIVE: To propose a new theory describing the development of the fallopian tube fimbria. DESIGN: Case series report. SETTING: Metropolitan tertiary care children’s hospital. PATIENT(S): Two girls, aged 12 and 20 years, who presented with pelvic pain. INTERVENTION(S): Magnetic resonance imaging, laparoscopy with salpingectomy, and pathologic analysis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Description of a novel theory regarding the embryologic development of the fallopian tube and its fimbria. RESULT(S): In two non-sexually active girls the cause of their pelvic pain was found to be a hydrosalpinx associated with a discontinuous fallopian tube in which the fimbriated end did not directly communicate with the remainder of the fallopian tube. CONCLUSION(S): The two cases of pure congenital fallopian tube atresia, the presence of fimbriae in patients with müllerian (uterine, cervical, and vaginal) agenesis, and the role of the fimbria in ovarian-like and peritoneal cancers, support a novel hypothes
