The surgical treatment of fibroids for infertility

Uterine fibroids are a major gynecologic disorder among women and commonly found in the infertile couple. Although numerous surgical techniques exist to destroy or remove these tumors, the role of such surgical procedures in the infertile woman has been heavily debated. The primary reason for this is a lack of evidence of a cause-and-effect relationship between fibroids and subfertility. However, review of the evidence suggests that submucous myomas and possibly intramural myomas both serve to decrease female fertility. A second reason for caution is concern over the impact of surgical treatment on fertility enhancement. For submucous myomas, hysteroscopic myomectomy has proven capable of increasing fertility rates, although this statement may not apply to type 2 submucous myomas. No evidence currently exists for a beneficial effect on fertility of surgical intervention for intramural or subserous fibroids. More randomized treatment trials are clearly needed to clarify the role of myomectomy and other procedures in the infertile woman with type 2 submucous and intramural myomas.