[The Allen-Masters syndrome]

The authors present 18 cases of the Allen-Masters syndrome diagnosed from 1978 to 1985. The pelvic peritoneal defect was diagnosed by laparoscopy in 15 cases, by laparotomy in 3 cases. There was some doubt about the presence of the syndrome in 4 cases. The syndrome was diagnosed by chance in 11 cases while investigating causes of sterility. The locations of peritoneal laceration were distributed between broad ligaments in 13 cases and the other areas of the Douglas pouch in 5 cases. In 3 cases there were no previous gynaecological and obstetrical traumas that might explain the cause of the presence of the syndrome. The treatment was surgical in 5 cases, i.e. the sutural of the ligament-peritoneal scarred laceration.