Maternal and newborn outcomes in patients with endometriosis-associated infertility

Aim . To identify the characteristics of pregnancy and childbirth in women with endometriosis-associated infertility (EAI). Materials and Methods. Here we performed retrospective case-control study which included 115 women with histologically verified endometriosis and 250 women without this condition. Statistical analysis was conducted using the IMB SPSS Statistics 20 software package. The data distribution was assessed using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Quantitative data are presented as median (Me) and interquartile range (Q1 – Q3) using the Mann-Whitney test. The level of statistical significance for testing the null hypothesis was set at p < 0.05. Results . Pregnancy in patients with EAI was statistically significantly more often complicated by placenta previa compared to the control group: 6 (5.2%) versus 3 (1.2%) (p = 0.031). Patients with EAI were delivered via cesarean section in 49.6% of cases, compared to 13.2% in those without EAI (p < 0.001). Labor in women with EAI was statistically significantly more often complicated by uterine inertia (hypotonic labor, 7.0% versus 2.4% in those without EAI, p = 0.043), retained placenta (4.3% vs 0.4%, p = 0.013); and hypotonic bleeding (3.5% vs 0.4%, p = 0.036). Maternal and neonatal outcomes including birth weight, Apgar scores at 1 and 5 minutes, and the duration of hospital stay did not differ significantly between the groups. Conclusions. Patients with EAI are characterized by a complicated course of pregnancy and childbirth with a higher incidence of placenta previa, abnormal labor, hypotonic bleeding, retained placenta, and cesarean delivery. Hence, the development of respective therapeutic and preventive measures is required to prevent these complications.