The frequency of ovulation from the affected ovary decreases following laparoscopic cystectomy in infertile women with unilateral endometrioma during a natural cycle

PURPOSE: To evaluate the cystectomy-induced damage on the follicular growth and ovulation of an affected ovary during natural cycles. METHODS: Twenty-eight infertile patients with unilateral ovarian endometriomas who underwent laparoscopic cystectomy were retrospectively evaluated. The ovulation rate of an affected ovary during natural cycles was compared before and after cystectomy in each patient, and it was also determined if ovulation from the affected ovaries resulted in pregnancy. RESULTS: After surgery, the ovulation rate was significantly lower than that before cystectomy (16.9 +/- 4.5% vs. 34.4 +/- 6.6%, P = 0.013). After surgery, 14 pregnancies were achieved without IVF treatment, and only 2 of them (14.3%) were achieved from an operated-side ovary. However, the pregnancy rate per ovulatory cycle of the operated-side ovary was not different from that of the intact ovary (8.8% vs. 5.8%, P = 0.750). CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic cystectomy is an invasive treatment in that it reduces the frequency of ovulation; however the pregnancy rate per ovulation did not deteriorate.