Journal of Clinical and Experimental Investigations

Abstract

Objective: Adnexal masses are the most common reason for gynecologic surgery in adolescent patients. Early detection and adequate management of adnexal lesions are very important for saving lives and preserving fertility. In this study, we analyzed the clinical characteristics of 106 Turkish adolescent women who underwent surgery for adnexal masses.
Methods: The study included 106 patients aged ≤20 years that underwent surgery for adnexal masses at our hospital between January 2008 and December 2013. Clinical profiles were retrospectively collected from the hospital medical records. The records were analyzed for demographic profiles, initial symptoms, preoperative radiologic findings, operative approach, surgical procedure, pathology findings, and the maximum diameter of the adnexal mass.
Results: The age of the patients ranged from 12 to 20 years (median, 18.8 years). The most common initial symptom in these patients was abdominal pain (56.6%). Non-neoplastic ovarian lesions in the patients included 7 (6.6%) corpora hemorrhagica, 10 (9.4%) corpus luteal cysts, 4 (3.8%) paratubal cysts, and 7 (6.6%) simple cysts. Benign neoplastic tumors included 20 (18.9%) mature cystic teratomas (i.e., dermoid tumors), 10 (9.4%) serous cystadenomas, 1 (0.9%) mucinous cystadenomas, and 7 (6.6%) endometriomas. The most common surgical approach and procedure were laparoscopy (67.0%) and cystectomy (60.4%), respectively.
Conclusion: Laparoscopy can be performed in many adolescent patients and conservative, adnexal-sparing surgery should be encouraged for all patients. Ovarian-preserving techniques should be a priority when surgery is performed for benign masses in order to optimize future fertility potential.