No recurrence of mature ovarian teratomas after laparoscopic cystectomy

Recurrence of ovarian teratomas was evaluated in a randomised trial to determine whether laparoscopic cystectomy had the same efficacy as laparotomy. Forty premenopausal non-pregnant women with a unilateral teratoma no larger than 10 cm were randomised to laparoscopy or laparotomy. Post-operative pain, duration of stay in hospital and duration of convalescence were compared. Women were reviewed every six months for five years. A higher proportion had milder pain, faster hospital discharge and faster recovery following laparoscopy than laparotomy. There were no recurrences of teratomas in both arms of the study, suggesting that laparoscopy has the same efficacy as laparotomy.