Abstract
The objective of the study is to report on patient characteristics, surgical findings, pathology, and recurrence of ovarian remnants. This is a retrospective case series completed at an academic tertiary care hospital. Seventeen patients were identified between September 2005 and December 2015 with ovarian remnant syndrome using a diagnosis code search at one institution. All patients underwent surgical excision. Pathology confirmed ovarian tissue. Three recurrences were treated non-surgically. All patients had a history of endometriosis and previous surgeries. The average number of laparotomies, laparoscopies, and cesarean sections was 1.29 (range, 0–3), 2.47 (range, 0–6), and 0.59 (range, 0–3), respectively. Ten patients (58.8 %) had a prior bilateral salpingoophorectomy. Seven patients (41.2 %) had a prior unilateral salpingoophorectomy. Five patients (29.4 %) had one prior excision; two patients (11.8 %) had two prior excisions of their ovarian remnant. Fifteen excisions were performed laparoscopically and two with planned laparotomy. There were no intraoperative complications. All cases had pathologically confirmed ovarian tissue. Three patients had recurrent disease. Treatments included medical suppression, ovarian artery embolization, and radiation. Surgical expertise, often utilizing minimally invasive techniques, allows for the dissection needed to remove ovarian remnants. Recurrence is possible. Medical or other procedural treatments may be appropriate alternatives or adjuncts to treatment.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Shemwell RE, Weed JC (1970) Ovarian remnant syndrome. Obstet Gynecol 36:2990303
Nezhat C, Kearney S, Malik S, Nezhat C, Nezhat F (2005) Laparoscopic management of ovarian remnant. Fertil Steril 83:973–978
Arden D, Lee T (2010) Laparoscopic excision of ovarian remnants: retrospective cohort study with long-term follow-up. J Minim Invasive Gynecol 18:194–199
Magtibay PM, Magrina JF (2006) Ovarian remnant syndrome. Clin Obstet Gynecol 49:526–534
Webb MJ (1989) Ovarian remnant syndrome. Aust N Z J Osbstet Gynaecol 29:433–435
Haglund KE, Viswanathan AN (2008) Computed tomography-based radiation therapy of ovarian remnants for symptomatic persistent endometriosis. Obstet Gynecol 111(2 Pt 2):579–583
Kho RM, Abao MS (2012) Ovarian remnant syndrome: etiology, diagnosis, treatment and impact of endoemtriosis. Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol 24:210–214
Maleux G, Stockx L, Wilms F, Marchal G (2000) Ovarian vein embolization for the treatment of pelvic congestion syndrome: long-term technical and clinical results. J Vasc Interv Radiol 11(7):859–864
Acknowledgments
Author contributions
A Benton: project development, data collection, data analysis, and manuscript writing/editing.
T Deimling: project development, data analysis, and manuscript writing/editing.
M Pacis: project development and manuscript writing/editing.
G Harkins: project development, data analysis, and manuscript writing/editing.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Funding
This study had no source of funding.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Ethical approval
An approval by an ethics committee was not applicable.
Informed consent
Informed consent was not applicable as determined by the Penn State Hershey Institutional Review Board.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Benton, A., Deimling, T., Pacis, M. et al. Ovarian remnant syndrome: a retrospective evaluation of surgical management. Gynecol Surg 13, 353–357 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10397-016-0988-7
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10397-016-0988-7