It  is  unfortunate  that  such  should  have  been  the  case,  because  the
pessary  is  of  great  value.  It  is  not  my  purpose  in  this  chapter  to
discuss  at  any  considerable  length  the  various  uses  of  the  pessary,
but  only  to  take  up  briefly  its  use  in  cases  of  retrodisplacement
affecting  the  fecundity  of  the  patient.  In  postpartum  retrodis-
placement, we  find  its  field  of  greatest  usefulness,  and  there  are
very  few  of  these  cases  which  cannot  be  cured  by  its  proper  use.
Whereas  the  proper  fitting  of  a  pessary  in  a  difficult  case  requires
considerable  experience  and  practice,  its  introduction  in  the  great
majority  of  cases  is  comparatively  simple.  The  pessary,  when
properly  fitted,  often  effects  a  cure;  when  improperly  fitted,  never
effects  a  cure.  Before  any  attempt  is  made  to  introduce  the  pes-
sary the  uterus  should  be  replaced  and  the  presence  of  adnexal
disease  ruled  out.  Such  involvement  is  usually  a  contra-indication
to  the  use  of  the  pessary.  Of  the  various  means  of  effecting
replacement  of  the  uterus,  some  are  applicable  to  certain  cases
which  would  be  useless  in  others.
