Abstract

ASYMPTOMATIC ENDOMETRIOSIS INCIDENCE IN SURGERY TREATED WOMEN FOR VARIOUS NOSOLOGICAL UNITS – A RETROSPECTIVE, SINGLE CENTER STUDY

Stefan Miladinov Kovachev*, Elena Petrova Chuprina, Alexandra Vladimirova Stoycheva, Miladin Stefanov Kovachev, Steliana Toneva Gicova and Anita Krasimirova Ganovska

Abstract

Endometriosis is a disease that affects about 170 million women worldwide, more than 10% of whom are of reproductive age. In addition to their standard clinical manifestation (pain and infertility), symptoms may be absent and the diagnosis may be made accidentally during surgery on another occasion. The aim of our study was to determine the incidence of asymptomatic histologically established endometriosis in women without complaints who underwent surgery on another occasion. Material and methods: The study is retrospective and was conducted for a 7-year period from 2013 until 2019. Included are 5 057 women aged from 26 to 78 years, hospitalized and treated surgically with various nosological units (benign, malignant, inflammatory). Results: Of all included patients, 4531 (89.6%) of them had no preoperative data for endometriosis, and 526 (10.4%) women had preoperative data for endometriosis. Asymptomatic endometriosis was found in 243 (4.8%) patients undergoing surgery on another occasion. The main reasons for surgical treatment are divided into precancerous, benign and malignant. The frequency of premalignant conditions as an indication for surgical intervention was 0.3%, that of malignant diseases was 0.6%, and that of benign - 3.9%. Conclusion: The presence of asymptomatic endometriosis should be considered and actively sought in the surgical treatment of women for adequate postoperative treatment.

Keywords: Asymptomatic endometriosis, Frequency, Surgical interventions.