Antimullerian hormone levels after laparoscopic endometrioma stripping surgery

To evaluate whether a change takes place in antimullerian hormone (AMH) levels reflecting the ovarian reserve after laparoscopic endometrioma stripping surgery and to demonstrate if there is any correlation between AMH levels and the sizes of endometriomas.

Fourty-seven women participated as the study group in this prospective controlled trial, 33 of whom (70.2%) had unilateral and 14 (29.7%) of whom had bilateral endometriomas. Pre- and post-operative serum AMH levels were measured and compared with 17 normo-ovulatory control cases and also correlated with endometrioma sizes.

Mean pre-operative AMH levels of the study group and the normo-ovulatory control cases did not reveal a statistically significant difference (1.62 +/- 1.09 ng/ml and 2.06 +/- 0.51 ng/ml, P > 0.05). Mean level of post-operative serum AMH of the study group decreased from 1.62 +/- 1.09 to 1.39 +/- 1.16. However, this reduction was not statistically significant. (P > 0.05). Pre- and post-operative AMH levels do not reveal a correlation with the size of endometrioma in both group of patients with either unilateral or bilateral endometrioma.

The presence of the endometrioma does not impair the AMH levels. Laparoscopic endometrioma stripping surgery do not appear to cause a damage in the AMH secreting healthy ovarian tissue, in the short-term follow-up. Laparoscopic stripping surgery of endometriomas in experienced hands is currently a valid approach.