Three-month treatment with triptorelin, letrozole and ulipristal acetate before hysteroscopic resection of uterine myomas: prospective comparative pilot study

Abstract Objective To compare the usefulness of preoperative treatment with triptorelin, letrozole or ulipristal acetate or no treatment before hysteroscopic removal of uterine submucosal myomas. Study design Single center prospective non-randomized comparative pilot study. The study included consecutive premenopausal patients undergoing hysteroscopic resection of myomas graded as type 0, type 1 or type 2 according to the FIGO classification with diameter between 20 and 35 mm. Exclusion criteria were: associated polyps, associated non-hysteroscopic surgical procedures, >2 myomas requiring hysteroscopic resection. This study enrolled patients who underwent either direct surgery (group S; n = 23) or 3-month preoperative treatment with triptorelin (3.75 mg every 28 days; group T; n = 20), letrozole (2.5 mg/day; group L; n = 11) or ulipristal acetate (5 mg/day; group U; n = 7). Patients underwent hysteroscopic resection of the myomas. Results All medical treatments caused a significant decrease in the volume of myomas (group T, p <.001; group L, p <.001; group U, p =.006); however, the percentage decrease in myoma volume was lower in group U than in group T (p =.001) and in group L (p =.010). The hysteroscopy time was higher in group S than in group T (p <.001) and in group L (p =.001); there was no significant difference in the hysteroscopy time between group S and group U (p =.206). Fluid absorption was lower in group T than in group S (p =.002) and in group L than in group S (p =.048); fluid absorption was similar in group S and group U (p =.110). Intra- and postoperative complications, postoperative pain, and patient satisfaction were similar in the four study groups. Surgeon's evaluation of operative difficulty was better in group T than in group S (p <.005). Conclusions Preoperative treatment with triptorelin and letrozole decreases the hysteroscopy time and the volume of fluid absorbed during hysteroscopic resection of uterine submucosal myomas.