Laparoendoscopic Ovarian-Sparing Surgery of Adnexal Tumors in Children and Adolescents by General Gynecologists: A 10-Year, Retrospective Cohort Study

Background: In pediatric and adolescent gynecology, ovarian-sparing surgery (OSS) is an approach for preserving the ovaries affected by tumors and torsion during surgical treatment. Materials and Methods: We analyzed participants from a tertiary Gynecology and Obstetrics University Hospital. Participants were patients <19 years of age with adnexal tumors managed surgically with removal of pathologically confirmed ovarian tissue in the period from 2008 to 2017. Results: The average age of 38 patients who underwent surgery for adnexal tumors and were included in the study was 16.78 ± 2.15 years, from 12 to 19 years, with significantly younger patients in the salpingo-oophorectomy/oophorectomy and laparotomy group ( P  = .036 and P  = .001). The laparoscopic approach was performed in 28 (73.68%) patients and laparotomy in 10 (26.31%) patients ( P  < .0001). Cystectomy was performed in 29 (76.31%), oophorectomy in 1 (2.63%), and salpingo-oophorectomy in 8 (21.05%) patients. A significantly higher number of patients underwent OSS with laparoscopy in scheduled surgical procedure and emergency surgery groups ( P  = .021 and P  = .028). Benign ovarian tumors were found in 31 (81.57%), borderline in 3 (7.89%), and malignant in 4 (10.52%) patients. Conclusion: Our study has shown a high trend in OSS using the endoscopic approach in management of adnexal tumors despite the fact that the management was done by general gynecologists.