Ovulation induction in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) can be carried out with drugs, such as clomiphene citrate (CC), which remains the first-line treatment option, and surgery, such as laparoscopic ovarian drilling (LOD), which is usually recommended as one of the second-line treatment options. Laparoscopic ovarian drilling may avoid or reduce the need for gonadotropins and at the same time reduce ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) and multiple pregnancy.

We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of LOD in clomiphene-resistant women and to identify the clinical factors that might predict its success.

Retrospective analysis in a tertiary level infertility unit.

All CC-resistant PCOS women who underwent LOD over a 10-year period were included. Polycystic ovarian syndrome was defined as per the Rotterdam criteria. The follow-up period was up to 3 years post-LOD. Outcomes, such as onset of regular cycles, spontaneous pregnancies, and live births were recorded.

A total of 59 PCOS women who underwent LOD and were available for follow-up were included in the study. Majority of the patients were less than 30 years of age with a body mass index (BMI) > 24 kg/m². Out of those, 12 conceived (20.3%) spontaneously and 14 (23.7%) had regular menstrual cycles after the procedure. The live birth rate was 16.9% (10/59). We did not find any association of clinical factors, such as age, BMI, type of infertility, and history of irregular cycles with LOD success.

Laparoscopic ovarian drilling can be offered as a treatment option in select group of CC-resistant women with reasonable success. Post-LOD, for those who do not have resumption of regular cycles, alternate method of ovulation induction can be initiated.

Thomas S, Vithayathil VP, Chandy A, Aleyamma TK, Kamath MS. Laparoscopic Ovarian Drilling in Clomiphene-resistant Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Women: A Retrospective Analysis. Int J Infertil Fetal Med 2017;8(3):93-96.