Improving results of hysteroscopic submucosal myomectomy for menorrhagia by concomitant endometrial ablation

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of endometrial ablation on the outcome of premenopausal patients undergoing hysteroscopic myomectomy for menorrhagia or menometrorrhagia DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study (Canadian Task Force classification II-2). SETTING: Private practice. PATIENTS: One hundred seventy-seven women with one or more submucosal myomas experiencing menorrhagia or menometrorrhagia. INTERVENTION: Hysteroscopic myomectomy without endometrial ablation in 104 patients and with concomitant endometrial ablation in 73 patients. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Bleeding was controlled in 95.9% of patients with endometrial ablation and in 80.8% of patients without endometrial ablation (p = .003). Complete removal of the myoma led to better results (p = .039), which were further improved by endometrial ablation (p = .022). Endometrial ablation improved bleeding in patients whose myomas could not be completely removed, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = .23). Subsequent hysterectomies were not decreased by endometrial ablation (p = .48) or by complete removal of the myoma (p = .83). Hysterectomies for bleeding problems were decreased by endometrial ablation. Pain and dysmenorrhea were a frequent cause of hysterectomy. CONCLUSION: Endometrial ablation at the time of hysteroscopic myomectomy improves results in the control of bleeding.