Acute late presentation of a functioning non-communicating rudimentary uterine horn containing an adenomyosis: A case report.

A functioning noncommunicating rudimentary horn is a rare uterine malformation. The presence of rudimentary uterine horn with adenomyosis is even rarer situation. Clinical presentation varies from mild pain that might present late in the clinical course with complications that can be gynecological such as pelvic pain and endometriosis or obstetrical such as preterm delivery, cesarean section, and ectopic pregnancy. We are reporting a case of a young woman who presented with acute abdominal pain that was superimposed by chronic pelvic pain due to endometriosis and deep pelvic vein thrombosis secondary to an enlarging noncommunicating rudimentary uterine horn containing extensive adenomyosis. With the help of MRI, initial diagnosis was given as rudimentary functioning horn containing fibroid and unilateral renal agenesis. The treatment comprised complete laparoscopic excision of the entire horn, and the patient reported significant improvement afterward. Final histopathology was rudimentary horn containing adenomyosis. Our paper is one of few papers reported adenomyosis in function noncommunication rudimentary horn.

Preoperative ripening of the cervix before operative hysteroscopy.

BACKGROUND: Hysteroscopy is an operation in which the gynaecologist examines the uterine cavity using a small telescopic instrument (hysteroscope) inserted via the vagina and the cervix. Almost 50% of hysteroscopic complications are related to difficulty with cervical entry. Potential complications include cervical tears, creation of a false passage, perforation, bleeding, or simply difficulty in entering the internal os (between the cervix and the uterus) with the hysteroscope. These complications may possibly be reduced with adequate preparation of the cervix (cervical ripening) prior to hysteroscopy. Cervical ripening agents include oral or vaginal prostaglandin, which can be synthetic (e.g misoprostol) or natural (e.g. dinoprostone) and vaginal osmotic dilators, which can be naturally occurring (e.g. laminaria) or synthetic. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether preoperative cervical preparation facilitates cervical dilatation and reduces the complications of operative hysteroscopy in women undergoing the procedure for any condition. SEARCH METHODS: In August 2014 we searched sources including the Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group (MDSG) Trials Register, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, ClinicalTrials.gov and reference lists of relevant articles. We searched for published and unpublished studies in any language. SELECTION CRITERIA: Two review authors independently selected randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of cervical ripening agents used before operative hysteroscopy in pre- and postmenopausal women. Cervical ripening agents could be compared to each other, placebo or no treatment. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Data extraction and quality assessment were conducted independently by two review authors. The primary review outcomes were effectiveness of cervical dilatation (defined as the proportion of women requiring mechanical cervical dilatation) and intraoperative complications. Secondary outcomes were mean time required to dilate the cervix, preoperative pain, cervical width, abandonment of the procedure, side effects of dilating agents and duration of surgery. We calculated odds ratios (ORs) for dichotomous outcomes and mean differences (MDs) for continuous outcomes, with 95% confidence intervals ( CIs). Data were statistically pooled where appropriate. Heterogeneity was assessed using the I(2) statistic. The overall quality of the evidence was assessed using GRADE methods. MAIN RESULTS: Nineteen RCTs with a total of 1870 participants were included. They compared misoprostol with no treatment or placebo, dinoprostone or osmotic dilators.Misoprostol was more effective for cervical dilatation than placebo or no intervention, with fewer women requiring mechanical dilatation (OR 0.08, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.16, five RCTs, 441 participants, I(2)=0%, moderate quality evidence). This suggests that in a population in which 80% of women undergoing hysteroscopy require mechanical dilatation without use of preoperative ripening agents, use of misoprostol will reduce the need for mechanical dilatation to between 14% and 39%. Misoprostol was associated with fewer intraoperative complications (OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.77, 12 RCTs, 901 participants, I(2)=0%, moderate quality evidence). This suggests that in a population in which 3% of women undergoing hysteroscopy experience intraoperative complications without use of preoperative ripening agents, use of misoprostol will reduce the risk of complications to 2% or less.When specific complications were considered, the misoprostol group had a lower rate of cervical laceration or tearing (OR 0.25, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.57, nine RCTS, 669 women, I(2)=0%, moderate quality evidence) or false track formation (OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.12 to 0.97, seven RCTs, 560 participants, I(2)=0%, moderate quality evidence). There was no evidence of a difference between the groups in rates of uterine perforation (0.42, 95% CI 0.13 to 1.38, seven RCTs, 455 participants, I(2)=0%, low quality evidence) or uterine bleeding (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.10 to 2.49, four RCTs, 340 participants, I(2)=0%, low quality evidence). Some treatment side effects (mild abdominal pain, vaginal bleeding, and increased body temperature) were more common in the misoprostol group.Compared with dinoprostone, misoprostol was associated with more effective cervical dilatation, with fewer women requiring mechanical dilatation (OR 0.58; 95% CI 0.34 to 0.98; one RCT, 310 participants, low quality evidence) and with fewer intraoperative complications (OR 0.32; 95% CI 0.12 to 0.83, one RCT, 310 participants, low quality evidence). However treatment side effects were more common in the misoprostol arm.Compared to osmotic dilatation (laminaria), misoprostol was associated with less effective cervical dilatation, with more women in the misoprostol group requiring mechanical dilatation (OR 5.96, 95% CI 2.61 to 13.59, one RCT, 110 participants, low quality evidence). There was no evidence of a difference between misoprostol and osmotic dilators in intraoperative complication rates (OR 5.14, 95% CI 0.24 to 109.01, three RCTs, 354 participants, low quality evidence), with only two events reported altogether.The overall quality of the evidence ranged from low to moderate. The main limitations in the evidence were imprecision and poor reporting of study methods. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: There is moderate quality evidence that use of misoprostol for preoperative ripening of the cervix before operative hysteroscopy is more effective than placebo or no treatment and is associated with fewer intraoperative complications such as lacerations and false tracks. However misoprostol is associated with more side effects, including preoperative pain and vaginal bleeding. There is low quality evidence to suggest that misoprostol has fewer intraoperative complications and is more effective than dinoprostone.There is also low quality evidence to suggest that laminaria may be more effective than misoprostol, with uncertain effects for complication rates. However the possible benefits of laminaria need to be weighed against the inconvenience of its insertion and retention for one to two days.

Prevalence and characteristics of abnormal Papanicolaou smear in Central Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence and characteristics of abnormal pap smear in the central region of Saudi Arabia. METHODS: In this retrospective case control study conducted in the Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Histopathology at King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, all pap smears screened for Saudi women between 2008 and 2011 were reviewed. Approximately 5000 pap smears are screened annually at King Abdulaziz Medical City utilizing the Bethesda III System (2001). All abnormal smears patients' data were collected and compared to the data of randomly selected 200 normal smears' patients. RESULTS: Abnormal pap smear prevalence was found to be 4.3% (841/19,650 Saudi patients were found with atypical epithelial cells abnormalities). Its prevalence in the years 2008 was 5.7%, 2009 was 4.9%, 2010 was 4.2%, and 2011 was 2.5%. Abnormal smear patients have lower parity (p=0.001), and were less likely to use intra-uterine devices (p=0.03) compared with normal smear patients. Presence of abnormal cervical appearance was associated with increased epithelial cell abnormalities (p=0.045). The only positive history that has characterized patients with epithelial cell abnormalities was their previous history of abnormal pap smear (p=0.001). Squamous cell abnormalities were identified in 91% of the patients (767/841), and glandular cell abnormalities were identified in 9% of the patients (74/841). CONCLUSION: Prevalence of abnormal pap smears in central Saudi Arabia is relatively low, while advanced glandular abnormalities prevalence was observed to be high. 

Human papillomavirus prevalence and type distribution among women attending routine gynecological examinations in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer (CC) is caused by persistent infection with high-risk (HR) human papillomavirus (HPV) types. In Saudi Arabia which has a population of 6.5 million women over the age of 15 years, approximately 152 new cases of CC are diagnosed and 55 women die from the disease annually. Nevertheless current epidemiological data for HPV in this population are limited. This study evaluated the prevalence and type distribution of HPV and documented the awareness of HPV infection and health-related behavior among Saudi and non-Saudi women attending routine examination. METHODS: This was an observational, epidemiological cross-sectional study conducted between April 2010 and December 2011 at three hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Cervical samples from women aged ≥15 years, who were attending routine gynecological examinations were collected and tested for HPV-DNA by polymerase chain reaction and typed using the SPF10 DEIA/LiPA25 system. Two questionnaires on health-related behavior and awareness of HPV infection were completed. RESULTS: A total of 417 women, mean age (standard deviation) 41.9 (±10.4) years, were included in the final analysis, of whom 77% (321/417) were Saudi nationals. HPV-DNA was detected in 9.8% women (41/417, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 7.1-13.1). The prevalence of any HR-HPV by age was: 25-34 years: 3.0%; 35-44 years: 4.5%; 45-54 years: 3.2%; >55 years: 10.9%. The most prevalent HR-HPV-types were: HPV-68/73 (5 cases); HPV-18 (4 cases); HPV-16 (3 cases). The most prevalent low risk (LR) types were HPV-6 (4 cases); HPV-42, HPV-53 and HPV-54 (2 cases each). The prevalence of HPV was higher among non-Saudi nationals vs. Saudi nationals (16.7% vs. 7.8%, P = 0.0234). No statistically significant risk factors were identified: 32.2% (101/314) women were aware of HPV and 89.9% (285/317) showed an interest in HPV vaccination. CONCLUSION: The overall prevalence of HPV was 9.8% in Saudi Arabia, but was higher in women over 55 years, as well as in non-Saudi nationals. These data provide a reference for public health authorities and may also help in determining future policies for the prevention of CC. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT01213459.

Biomarkers of oxidative stress in women with pre-eclampsia.

AIM: The potential role of oxidative stress in the pathophysiology of pre-eclampsia has been reported in the literature. There are only a few studies that have investigated changes in malondialdehyde (MDA), vitamin E and total blood glutathione together in pre-eclampsia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to measure the levels of MDA, vitamin E and total glutathione as putative circulatory markers of oxidative stress for the early detection of pre-eclampsia. PATIENTS & METHODS: In this case-control study, blood samples were collected from 40 pre-eclamptic and 80 normal pregnant females at the department of obstetrics and gynecology at King Abdulaziz Medical City (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) between February 2009 and January 2010. Circulating markers of oxidative stress were evaluated, including MDA, total glutathione and vitamin E, by high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS: Markers of oxidative stress including serum MDA, total glutathione and vitamin E were found to be significantly different in both groups. CONCLUSION: MDA, vitamin E and blood total glutathione are possible candidate markers to predict pre-eclampsia.

Antibiotic use and risk of gynecological cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Several studies addressed the association between antibiotic use and breast cancer risk. The objective of this study was to assess the association between antibiotic use and risk of cervical, ovarian, and uterine cancer. STUDY DESIGN: We carried out a population-based case-control study using data from Saskatchewan Health administrative databases (Canada) between the years 1981 and 2000. Cases were matched to 4 controls, using incidence density sampling. The effect of dosage and timing of antibiotic use, over a minimum of 15 years before diagnosis, on cervical, ovarian, or uterine cancer risk was assessed. Number of prescriptions and number of pills were used as exposure definitions. The effect of different classes of antibiotics on cancer risk was also studied. RESULTS: A total of 1225 cancer cases [192 cervical, 445 ovarian, and 588 uterine] and 4900 matched controls were included in this study. Antibiotic exposure (number of prescriptions) during the period of 1-15 years in the past was significantly associated with a reduced risk of cervical cancer; Relative Risk (RR)=0.40, 0.31, 0.26, and 0.29 for the four exposure quartiles, respectively. No association was found for ovarian or uterine cancer. When number of pills was considered, similar results were found. There was no effect of the timing or class of antibiotic exposure on cervical cancer risk. CONCLUSIONS: Antibiotic exposure up to 15 years in the past was associated with a decreased risk of cervical cancer. The lack of temporal trends and the absence of class specific effects suggest a non-causal relationship.

Didelphic uterus and obstructed hemivagina resulting in obstructed hydronephrosis of transplanted kidney.

Uterine didelphys are rare malformations involving the Mullerian ducts. The incidence ranges from 0.1% to 3.8%. This wide range could be because of inaccurate diagnosis or to the fact that many of these diagnoses are not detected during the women's lifetime. Here, we report the management of a 16-year-old female patient who had uterine didelphys with obstructed hemivagina, resulting in obstructive hydronephrosis in her transplanted kidney.

Hormone therapy for endometriosis and surgical menopause.

BACKGROUND: Endometriosis is characterized by the presence of ectopic endometrial tissue that might lead to many distressing and debilitating symptoms. Despite available studies supporting standard hormone therapy for women with endometriosis and post-surgical menopause, there is still a concern that estrogens may induce a recurrence of the disease and its symptoms. OBJECTIVES: This review aimed to look at pain and disease recurrence in women with endometriosis who used hormone therapy for post-surgical menopause. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group Specialized Register (March 2008), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library 2008, Issue 3), MEDLINE (1966 to March 2008), EMBASE (1980 to March 2008), and references lists of articles. Relevant journals and conference proceedings were handsearched. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomized controlled trials studying hormone therapy for women with endometriosis in post-surgical menopause. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Review authors assessed the eligibility of trials and their quality. MAIN RESULTS: Two studies fulfilled our inclusion criteria. One trial compared the nonstop transdermal application of 17beta-estradiol (0.05 mg/day) combined with cyclic medroxy progesterone acetate (10 mg per day) for 12 days per month in women with a conserved uterus with nonstop tibolone (2.5 mg/day). The second trial used sequential administration of estrogens and progesterone with two 22 cm(2) patches applied weekly to produce a controlled release of 0.05 mg/day. Micronized progesterone was administered orally (200 mg/day) for 14 days with a 16-day interval free of treatment. Pain and dyspareunia The first trial reported recurrence of pain in the estrogen and progesterone arm in 4/10 of women compared with 1/11 in the tibilone arm. In the latter, 4/115 women reported recurrence of pain in the treatment group compared with 0/57 patients in the no-treatment arm. Neither finding was statistically different.Confirmed recurrence or exacerbation of endometriosis This outcome was not reported in the first trial. The second found that 2/115 of the treatment group developed recurrence of endometriosis with no recurrence reported in the no-treatment group. This was not statistically significant. No woman was re-operated on in the no-treatment group compared with 2/115 in the treatment group. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Hormone replacement therapy for women with endometriosis in post-surgical menopause could result in pain and disease recurrence. However, the evidence in the literature is not strong enough to suggest depriving severely symptomatic patients from this treatment. There is a need for more randomised controlled studies.

The significance of documenting clinical appearance of the uterine cervix in the cervical cytology form.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether or not the Pap smear taker is reporting the clinical appearance of the cervix on the cytology request form, and if cytologist / smear taker are giving any importance to this information prior to issuing advice on subsequent follow-up. Finally, to evaluate the clinicians' response to normal Pap smear report in the absence of the clinical comment on the cervix. METHODS: A retrospective study, for a total of 1196 random smear results performed between 1999 and 2000 at King Fahad National Guard Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with its relevant charts were evaluated. The samples were divided into 2 main groups. Group I, the Pap smears sent with the absence of clinical description of the cervix, and group II, was sent with the clinical description of the cervix. Cytologist follow up recommendations and the clinicians' response were evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 1196 Pap smears were reviewed. Of the total 510 (42.6%) smears represented group I. Vast majority 506/510 (99.2%) were reported to be normal. A 12 months follow up was given for 505/506 (99.8%) smears. Only 4/510 (0.8%) Pap smears were abnormal and relevant cytologist's recommendations were given. Clinicians reassessed the uterine cervix for only 7.7% of the patients in the group. A total of 686/1196 (57.4%) smears represented group II. The vast majority 630 (91.8%) were with normal cervical appearance, 627/630 (99.5%) had normal cytology and only 3/630 (0.5%) had significant intraepithelial lesion. Relevant recommendations were given by the cytologist and were accepted by clinicians. A total of 56/686 (8.2%) had abnormal cervical appearance and 45/56 (80.4%) had normal cytology. A 12 months follow up was recommended for all except 7/45 (15.6%). Clinicians have followed these recommendations for all except 5/45 (11.1%). Eleven out of 56 (19.6%) smears were abnormal, relevant recommendations were given by the cytologist and all were followed by the clinicians. CONCLUSION: High proportion of cervical smears request did not report clinical appearance of uterine cervix (42.6%). In patients whose cervical smear was reported abnormal (8.2%), 19.6% of them were found with significant intra-epithelial lesion. The clinical appearance of the cervix should be documented on the Pap smear request. Follow up recommendation for Pap smears carried out without clinical appearance description should be left to the clinician.

Assessment of risk factors of uterine cancer in Saudi patients with postmenopausal bleeding.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether postmenopausal bleeding (PMB) in our postmenopausal patients is a significant early symptom of uterine cancer (UC) and to assess risk factors for developing the disease in our population. METHODS: A retrospective observational study conducted at King Fahad National Guard Hospital (KFNGH), Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A review of documents was carried out from PMB patients who were admitted to the hospital from January 1990 through to December 2000. Factors that are usually associated with UC were studied (age, body mass index, parity, menopausal duration, past medical history, ultrasound endometrial thickness, and number of PMB episodes). RESULTS: Forty-seven/one hundred and ninety-five patients (24.1%) were found to have UC. One hundred and forty-eight/one hundred and ninety-five patients (75.9%) had no pathology or a benign pathology. After adjustment for confounding variables, patient's is age >60-years and occurrence of >/=2 episodes of PMB were the risk factors significantly related to UC development. Age 61-70-years P=0.02, odds ratio (OR) 6.8, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.4-32.9. Age >70-years P=0.001, OR 28.4, 95% CI 3.5-156.3. Occurrence of >/= 2 episodes of PMB P=0.005, OR 4.5, 95% CI 1.6-11.8. Endometrial thickness >5mm, diabetes, hypertension and obesity were not found to be among the risk factors associated with UC development. CONCLUSION: Patient's age >60-years and occurrence of >/=2 episodes of PMB were the risk factors significantly related to UC development in saudi patients with PMB. National risk factors assessment though case control study is required.

Short and long term complications of abdominal and vaginal hysterectomy for benign disease.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the indications, short, intermediate and long term complications for total abdominal versus vaginal hysterectomy, in women with benign pelvic disease. METHODS: This study was carried out at King Fahad National Guard Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Chart review was conducted from 1995 to 1999, for all patients who had hysterectomy for benign disease. We compared indications, short, intermediate and long term complications of total abdominal versus vaginal hysterectomy. A total of 108 patients who had hysterectomy were available for analysis. Group one consisted of patients who had total abdominal hysterectomy (N=82), and group 2 consisted of patients who had vaginal hysterectomy (N=26). RESULTS: The principle indication for the vaginal hysterectomy was uterine prolapse 81%, which occurs in women >45-years-old. While, the most common indications for the total abdominal hysterectomy were menstrual disorders and uterine fibroids 56%, which occur in women <45-years-old. The overall complication rates were 51.2% and 23.1%, in women who underwent total abdominal hysterectomy and vaginal hysterectomy (p=0.01, odds ratio = 3.5). Twelve patients (14.6%) required 2nd intervention or rehospitalization, or both, in the total abdominal hysterectomy group, while none were required in the vaginal hysterectomy group. Febrile morbidity formed the major category of the postoperative complications in our study, total incidence was 27.8% (30/108). No statistically significant differences were noted between the total abdominal hysterectomy [30.1% (25/82)] and the vaginal hysterectomy groups [19.2% (5/26), (p=0.3)], nor for women who received antibiotic prophylaxis [25.5% (14/55)] and women who did not [28.3% (15/53), (p=0.7)]. CONCLUSION: Vaginal hysterectomy is associated with less intraoperative, intermediate and late complication rates than total abdominal hysterectomy. No significant differences in postoperative febrile morbidity, but significantly shorter hospitalization were noted among women who received antibiotic prophylaxis compared to those who did not.