Conservative Surgical Management of Adenomyosis: Implications for Infertility and Pregnancy Outcomes-A Perspective Review.

Background/

Objectives

Adenomyosis is increasingly being identified in women of childbearing age as a cause of infertility and adverse pregnancy outcomes. As hysterectomies are not suitable for fertile women, conservative surgical management has become a promising solution. We aimed to synthesize current evidence on conservative uterus-sparing surgical techniques for adenomyosis, focusing on implications for infertility treatment and pregnancy outcomes.

Methods

A search of PubMed, Google Scholar, and Europe PMC from 2022 to July 2025 was conducted using combinations of the words "adenomyosis," "fertility," "infertility," "pregnancy outcomes," "adenomyomectomy," and "uterine-sparing surgery." Sixteen high-relevance studies were chosen that included reproductive-aged women who had conservative surgery for adenomyosis.

Results

Excisional techniques such as adenomyomectomy yield pregnancy rates of >50% and live birth rates of up to 70% in focal disease, with less success in diffuse disease. Non-excisional approaches-high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU), radiofrequency ablation (RFA), and uterine artery embolization (UAE)-yield equivalent pregnancy (40-53%) and live birth (35-74%) rates in selected patients, with fewer surgical complications. Adjunctive hormonal therapy, particularly GnRH agonists, appears to improve outcomes. Risks include placenta accreta spectrum disorders and uterine rupture (≤6%), especially in diffuse adenomyosis. The type of lesion, location, and junctional zone thickness are strong predictors of fertility outcomes.

Conclusions

Conservative surgery can augment fertility in appropriately chosen women with adenomyosis, with removal being the preferred treatment for focal disease and non-removal techniques offering encouraging alternatives in mild or intracorporeal disease. The addition of adjunct hormonal therapy and standardized patient selection criteria will optimize results. The lack of European professional society guidelines underscores the need for harmonized protocols in order to standardize the diagnosis, surgery, and reporting of results.