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Operative hysteroscopy for treatment of intrauterine pathologies does not interfere with later endometrial development in patients undergoing in vitro fertilization

  • Gynecologic Endocrinology and Reproductive Medicine
  • Published:
Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Operative hysteroscopy procedure is extensively used for the treatment of intrauterine abnormalities that can potentially cause infertility. To date, there are little data addressing the effect of operative hysteroscopy that applies electrical current for excision and its subsequent effect on endometrial thickness. This study was aimed to assess the effect of thermal resection used in operative hysteroscopy on endometrial thickness and on fertility outcome in women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Methods

A retrospective study conducted at Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, a tertiary referral center. Included were IVF women who underwent an operative hysteroscopy throughout the years 2000–2010 for intrauterine pathologies.

Results

Throughout the years 2000–2010, 41 IVF women who underwent an operative hysteroscopy using electric current between their 82 IVF cycles were studied. The mean age of women at the time of the intervention was 37.1 years (36.7 and 37.5 at the IVF cycles before and after intervention, respectively). The maximal endometrial thickness before operative hysteroscopy was 10.7 mm compared to 9.5 mm after all procedures (P < 0.001). Excluding polypectomy cases (n = 24) the endometrial thickness was 9.9 mm before vs. 9.1 mm after operative hysteroscopy (P < 0.001). The clinical pregnancy rate was 19.5 % before as compared to 24.4 % after operative hysteroscopy (NS). The take home baby rate (THBR), however, was significantly increased following operative hysteroscopy for all indications from 2.4 to 12.2 % (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

Despite the small change in endometrial thickness, our results indicate that using electric current is safe to treat intrauterine pathologies.

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Author notes

    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hadassah Medical Center and Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, P.O. Box 12000, 91120, Jerusalem, Israel

      Liron Kogan, Uri Dior, Henry H. Chill, Gilad Karavani, Ariel Revel, Asher Shushan & Alex Simon

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    1. Liron Kogan
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    2. Uri Dior
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    3. Henry H. Chill
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    4. Gilad Karavani
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    5. Ariel Revel
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    6. Asher Shushan
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    7. Alex Simon
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    Corresponding author

    Correspondence to Gilad Karavani.

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    Ethical standards

    This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) ethics committee and has therefore been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. The manuscript does not contain clinical studies or patient data.

    Conflict of interest

    The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

    Additional information

    L. Kogan and U. Dior contributed equally to this study.

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    Kogan, L., Dior, U., Chill, H.H. et al. Operative hysteroscopy for treatment of intrauterine pathologies does not interfere with later endometrial development in patients undergoing in vitro fertilization. Arch Gynecol Obstet 293, 1097–1100 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-015-3988-3

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    • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-015-3988-3

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