3D-ultrasonography for Assessing Endometrial Receptivity to Implantation after Conservative Surgery for Ovarian Endometriomas

Abstract

Study Objective: To assess, based on 3D-ultrasonography data, endometrial receptivity to implantation in women who have undergone conservative surgery for ovarian endometriomas (OE). Study Design: This was a prospective, comparative, clinical study. Materials and Methods: One hundred and seventy-two women who had undergone excision of OE were examined in the study: 114 patients with anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) levels below 1.2 ng/mL (Group I, including subgroup A made up of 44 women younger than 35 and subgroup B made up of 70 women aged 35 to 40) and 58 patients with AMH ≥1.2 ng/mL (Group II). 3D-ultrasonography was performed at six and 12 months after cyst removal (between days 6 and 8 after ovulation). The VOCAL software was used to assess endometrial volume and volumetric blood flow indices, such as vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI), and vascularizationflow index (VFI). Study Results: One year after the surgery, endometrial volume in women from subgroup IA and Group II and volumetric blood flow indices in women from Group II did not significantly differ from population mean values. In subgroup IB endometrial gland volume remained reduced throughout the observation period; hemodynamics did not improve in either the endometrium (VI: 2.39 ± 1.57% after six months and 2.32 ± 1.44% after 12 months) or the subendometrial layer (VI: 10.96 ± 5.68% and 11.86 ± 4.59%, respectively). Conclusion: The structural and hemodynamic abnormalities revealed in the endometrium in the postoperative period should be viewed as factors worsening endometrial receptivity to implantation. Keywords: ovarian endometriosis, endometrial disorders, 3D-ultrasonography, volumetric blood flow indices.