To operate or not to operate on women with deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE) before in vitro fertilization (IVF)

First-line surgery versus first-line assisted reproductive technology for women with deep infiltrating endometriosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The efficiency of different first-line treatments, such as first-line surgery and assisted reproductive technology (ART), in women with deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE) is still unclear due to a lack of direct comparative trials. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to elucidate and compare the efficacies of first-line treatments in patients with DIE, with an emphasis on fertility outcomes.

Methods

An exhaustive search of PubMed Central, SCOPUS, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane trial registry, Google Scholar, and Clinicaltrials.gov databases was done to identify studies directly comparing first-line surgery and assisted reproductive technology (ART) for DIE, and reporting fertility-related outcomes. Pooled estimates for each of the binary outcomes were reported as odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The results were pooled using a random-effects model with the Mantel-Haenszel technique.

Results

Our results show that pregnancy rate per patient (OR, 1.47; 95% CI, 0.59 to 3.63), pregnancy rate per cycle (OR, 1.16; 95% CI, 0.45 to 2.99), and live births per patient (OR, 1.66; 95% CI, 0.56 to 4.91) were comparable in DIE patients, treated with surgery or ART as a first line of treatment. When both complete and incomplete surgical DIE excision procedures were taken into account, surgery was associated with a significant enhancement in the pregnancy rate per patient (OR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.11 to 2.40).

Conclusion

The available evidence suggests that both first-line surgery and ART can be effective DIE treatments with similar fertility outcomes. However, further analysis reveals that excluding studies involving endometriomas significantly alters the understanding of treatment efficacy between surgery and ART for DIE-associated infertility.

Systematic Review Registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/display_record.php?RecordID=426061, identifier CRD42023426061.

The Impact of Endometriosis on In Vitro Fertilization Outcome

Introduction:Endometriosis is a common inflammatory disease and a major cause of infertility through various mechanisms. Materials and method: We conducted a retrospective study in infertile women with endometriosis who underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF) in order to evaluate the particularities and outcome of ovarian stimulation. Results:A total of 59 patients aged 24-40 years were included. Clinical characteristics of the studied group revealed dysmenorrhea in 66.66% of cases, previous ovarian surgery in 57.89% and primary infertility in 78.94%. The most used protocol was the short one with antagonist (64.91%), followed by the long protocol with agonist (22.80%), and Dual-stim protocol (12.28%). The number of ovarian stimulation days varied between 8-14 days. The total number of oocytes obtained ranged between 0-12. Standard IVF was performed in 40.35% of cases and FIV-ICSI in 59.64% of cases; 78.94% of patients were able to obtain an embryo and blastocysts were obtained in 42.10% of cases. All patients aged under 35 obtained at least one viable embryo. Fresh or frozen single embryo transfer was furtherly performed with a day 3 embryo or a blastocyst. Fresh embryo transfer was mainly performed with day 3 embryos (60.46%). The overall biochemical pregnancy rate in the studied lot was 35.59%. The biochemical pregnancy rate was 40% in the group of patients aged under 35 and 35.13% in the group aged over 35 years. Conclusion:Women with endometriosis are a special category of poor ovarian response mainly due to the decline in ovarian reserve and inferior IVF results are expected due to a lower number of retrieved oocytes, lower fertilization rates, poor embryo quality and altered endometrial receptivity.

Safety of in-vitro fertilization in women with endometriosis

Management of women with endometriosis in general is complex. It requires a multidisciplinary and tailored approach. The time of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) may be particularly complicated because women with the disease face peculiar additional risks. In particular, oocytes retrieval may be more difficult and women with endometriomas are exposed to a low but consistent risk of infection and ovarian abscess development. There are also concerns regarding progression of deep invasive peritoneal lesions and misdiagnosis of an occult early ovarian cancer. However, evidence on these latter points is more controversial. Taken together, this body evidence is generally reassuring and does not justify prophylactic surgery prior to IVF to shrink these risks. However, given the uncertainties, women with endometriosis must be informed in depth of these peculiar additional risks.

Analysis of IVF/ICSI-FET Outcomes in Women With Advanced Endometriosis: Influence on Ovarian Response and Oocyte Competence

Aims: To determine the impact of advanced endometriosis (EMS) on in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection and frozen-thawed embryo transfer (IVF/ICSI-FET) outcomes and analyze the influencing factors. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on sterile women with ovarian endometriomas (OMAs), including patients who underwent laparoscopic cystectomy (n = 224, 224 IVF/ICSI cycles, 205 FET cycles) and aspiration (n = 139, 139 IVF/ICSI cycles, 148 FET cycles); peritoneal EMS (n = 96, 96 IVF/ICSI cycles, 89 FET cycles); and tubal factors (n = 360, 360 IVF/ICSI cycles, 474 FET cycles). Our main outcomes included the number of MII oocytes retrieved, fertilization rate, the number of viable embryos, viable embryo rate per oocyte retrieved in oocyte retrieval cycles, and clinical pregnancy rate per transfer, live birth rate per transfer, and cumulative clinical pregnancy rate of this oocyte retrieval cycle in FET cycles. Finally, binary logistic regression analysis was performed to generate a prediction model for cumulative clinical pregnancy. Results: The results showed that significantly fewer MII oocytes retrieved and viable embryos and lower viable embryo rate and cumulative clinical pregnancy rate were observed in women with EMS compared with the control. Women with peritoneal EMS had lower fertilization rate and viable embryo rate per oocyte retrieved than patients with OMA (all p < 0.05). However, the pregnancy outcomes were not significantly different between the two phenotypes. The patients who underwent laparoscopic cystectomy had fewer MII oocytes retrieved and viable embryos compared with those with intact endometrioma(s) but no significant difference in pregnancy outcomes between the two types of OMA patients. By binary logistic regression analysis, antral follicle count (AFC) was found to be an independent factor associated with cumulative clinical pregnancy in this oocyte retrieval cycle (odds ratio = 1.054; 95% confidence interval, 1.011-1.100; p = 0.014), and the AFC prediction model of cumulative clinical pregnancy was established, with an area under the curve of 0.60. Conclusions: Our data supported that advanced EMS has negative effect on cumulative clinical pregnancy per oocyte retrieval cycle, and AFC is an independent predictor, which is mainly caused by poor ovarian response associated with OMA per se or its surgery and the damage of peritoneal EMS to oocyte maturation.

Endometriosis, endometrioma, and ART results: Current understanding and recommended practices

Endometriosis and infertility are linked in a complex relationship, and a number of different pathogenetic mechanisms may associate the two. Endometriosis is diagnosed in 6-8% of women undergoing ART. Women with endometriosis appear to have similar ART outcomes compared to controls in terms of live birth rates, despite a lower oocyte quality. Laparoscopy should not be routinely performed before ART with the only aim to diagnose mild or moderate endometriosis, but if the latter is found, surgical removal can be considered, as it might improve pregnancy rates. In case of more severe forms of the disease (endometrioma and deep infiltrating endometriosis), the benefits of surgery before ART are uncertain and must be balanced against risks. Management decisions should be individualized based on patient choice, age, associated symptoms, and the risk of repeat surgery.