Perioperative and reproductive outcomes' comparison of mini-laparotomy and laparoscopic myomectomy in the management of uterine leiomyomas: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate and compare mini-laparotomy (MLPT) with laparoscopic (LPS) myomectomy perioperative and reproductive outcomes. METHODS: We systematically searched for related articles in the MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane library databases. Nine studies (4 randomized, 3 retrospective, 1 prospective and 1 case-control study) which involved 1723 patients met the inclusion criteria and were considered eligible for inclusion. RESULTS: Demographic characteristics were similar between the two groups. LPS was associated with shorter hospital stay (p = 0.04), lower blood loss (p < 0.00001), shorter duration of median ileus (p < 0.00001) and fewer episodes of postoperative fever (p = 0.04). None of the reproductive factors examined (pregnancy rate, preterm delivery, vaginal delivery and delivery with caesarean section) in women diagnosed with unexplained infertility and/or symptomatic leiomyomas reached statistical significance although the results represent a small size effect. CONCLUSION: Our analysis demonstrated that LPS seems to be an alternative, safe and reliable surgical procedure for uterine leiomyoma treatment and in everyday practice seems to offer improved outcomes-regarding at least the perioperative period-over MLPT.