Long term outcomes following laparoscopic ovarian diathermy

Cindy Farquhar

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal imbalance that prevents ovulation – and pregnancy.  Women with this condition can be treated with oral medication, hormone injections or laparoscopic ovarian diathermy (LOD).  This procedure punctures holes in the ovary to destroy the tissue that produces testosterone.  Hormone balance improves, and regular ovulation is often restored – enabling women to become pregnant without further fertility treatment.

Professor Cindy Farquhar is planning a follow-up study of the women who took part in a randomised controlled trial of hormone injections and LOD between 1996 and 2000, to assess the long term effects of their treatment.  The aim is to determine whether natural ovulation was restored to women who underwent LOD, and for how long.  The number of pregnancies that occurred naturally following LOD will also be recorded.

There is some concern that LOD may increase the risk of premature ovarian failure, and this will be assessed during the study.  The study aims to give women with polycystic ovaries a more complete picture of the benefits and risks of different treatments that will help them to conceive.

To read more about the randomised controlled trial of LOD and gonadotropin, click here

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