Postoperative danazol therapy in infertility patients with severe endometriosis

The value of perioperative medical therapy in the management of infertility patients with severe endometriosis is uncertain. Previous reports of pre- or postlaparatomy danazol provide no clear direction regarding efficacy. Of 200 consecutive cases of severe endometriosis, 138 infertility patients were selected for study. One hundred nineteen patients, the control group, had laparotomy alone; 19 had laparotomy followed immediately by danazol therapy. The pregnancy rate in the control group was 30% (36/119) versus 79% (15/19) in the study group, (P less than 0.001). The results of this preliminary report indicate that danazol treatment in the immediate postlaparotomy period of patients with severe endometriosis significantly improves the pregnancy rate over comparable patients treated with surgery alone. It is hoped that these results will encourage other surgeons to implement a prospective surgical-medical approach, so that the most efficacious treatment for infertile patients with severe endometriosis can be determined.