Assessment of ovarian reserve in patients with ovarian endometriosis following laparoscopic enucleation of a cyst accompanied by CO₂ laser ablation or electroablation.

INTRODUCTION: Endometriosis affects about 5-15% of women in the reproductive period. One of the most important complications of pelvic endometriosis is infertility. OBJECTIVE: The assessment of ovarian endometriosis therapy with the use of combined laparoscopic techniques (cyst enucleation with electroablation/CO2 laser ablation) and their influence on the preservation of the ovarian reserve. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Fifty-eight patients aged 19-40 with diagnosed ovarian endometriosis underwent pre-surgical assessment of their ovarian reserve consisting of antral follicle count (AFC), basal ovarian volume (BOV) and FSH level. Twenty-four patients underwent laparoscopic enucleation of the cyst with CO2 laser ablation and thirty-four patients had enucleation with successive electroablation. The ovarian reserve of the patients was reassessed during follow-up assessments three and six months after surgery. RESULTS: In neither group was there a statistically significant decrease of AFC after three or six months. Additionally, in the group that underwent enucleation with electroablation, a significant drop in FSH level was observed after three months. This group was characterized by a statistically significant decrease in BOV at the three- and six-month follow-up assessments. 17% patients had ovarian relapses visible in the ultrasound scan at the six month follow-up assessment. In the group of patients who underwent enucleation with CO2 laser ablation, BOV had not changed significantly, while a high rate of ovarian relapses (39%) was observed. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of significant changes in AFC level after the surgeries suggests an initial positive evaluation of both techniques in the context of ovarian reserve preservation. The detrimental BOV decrease after enucleation with electroablation and high relapse rate after enucleation after CO2 laser ablation shows that further research is needed in order to optimize the laparoscopic techniques of endometriosis therapy.