Dyspareunia and quality of sex life after surgical excision of endometriosis: a systematic review.

Dyspareunia, a common symptom of endometriosis, severely affects quality of sex life in affected women. The objective of the present work was to review the effect of surgical resection of endometriosis on pain intensity and quality of sex life. MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were searched for papers investigating the outcome after surgical endometriosis resection on dyspareunia and quality of sex life measured via VAS/NAS respectively via standardised measuring instruments. Data did not permit a meaningful meta-analysis. Out of 64 papers, three studies fulfilled the predefined inclusion criteria involving 128 patients with endometriosis and dyspareunia preoperatively. All included studies showed a significant postoperative reduction (p<0.05) of dyspareunia after a follow-up period of 12 up to 60 months. Sex life also improved significantly (p<0.05), and predominantly evaluated parameters like quality of life and mental health. Intra- and postoperative complications were described in two out of three studies. Surgical excision of deep infiltrating endometriosis is feasible and improves dyspareunia and quality of sex life significantly.