Abdominal wall endometriosis following hypertonic saline abortion

CUTANEOUS endometriosis is usually an easily detectable and treatable disease with a favorable prognosis. Although the lesion may occur in skin and subcutaneous tissue not violated by a surgical incision, there are numerous reports of endometriosis in operative scars. The following case illustrates the occurrence of endometriosis in the lower abdominal wall, following transabdominal hypertonic saline instillation into the uterus of a pregnant woman for elective abortion. Report of a Case A 28-year-old woman was referred to the University of California at Los Angeles Hospital surgical service for investigation of a firm mass in the lower midline abdominal wall. The patient first noted the mass seven years previously, three months after she had undergone a transabdominal hypertonic saline injection to induce abortion of a 20-week gestation. The operative record at the time of that abortion reported the use of an 18-gauge needle with stylet, penetrating the abdomen in the lower