Pregnancy Rates After Surgical Treatment of Deep Infiltrating Endometriosis in Infertile Patients With at Least 2 Previous In Vitro Fertilization or Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection Failures

Abstract

To assess the postoperative probabilities of pregnancy in patients with deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE) and ≥2 previous in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) failures. Retrospective study using data prospectively recorded in the North-West Inter Regional Female Cohort for Patients with Endometriosis (CIRENDO) database. University tertiary referral center. Infertile patients under the age of 43 years, having undergone ≥2 previous IVF or ICSI failures, who were surgically managed for DIE. Complete excision of DIE. The pregnancy rate after surgery was assessed. One hundred and four infertile patients had surgery in 7 different centers participating in the database. Seventy-seven women intended to get pregnant postoperatively. Four patients who got pregnant by oocyte donation were excluded, resulting in a sample of 73 women. The mean patient age was 31.9 years (standard deviation [SD], 4.1), and the mean length of history of infertility was 48.4 months (SD, 26.5). Stage III and IV endometriosis were recorded in 83.6% of patients. The mean postoperative follow-up was 46.6 months (SD, 20.5). The postoperative pregnancy rate was 43.8% with a mean time from surgery to pregnancy of 11.1 months. 21.8% of pregnancies were spontaneous, 31.2% were obtained by IVF, 21.8% by frozen embryo transfer, 18.7% by IVF-ICSI, and 3.1% by intrauterine insemination. Multivariate analysis revealed that ovarian surgery, age ≥35 years old, and stage II endometriosis was associated with the probability of conception. Infertile women with ≥2 IVF-ICSI failures may be referred for surgery as it appears related to reasonable postoperative pregnancy rates, particularly when endometriomas surgery is either not required or not performed. Surgery for DIE does not routinely delay conception, as it usually occurs during the year following surgery.