Ovarian electrocautery versus human menopausal gonadotrophins and pure follicle stimulating hormone therapy in the treatment of patients with polycystic ovarian disease

Eighty-eight clomiphene citrate-resistant infertile patients with oligomenorrhoea or amenorrhoea attributable to polycystic ovarian disease were divided at random into three groups. Twenty-nine patients were treated with ovarian electrocautery, 30 with human menopausal gonadotrophins (hMG) and 29 with pure follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). Successful ovulation was induced in 71.4, 70.6 and 66.7% of the cycles in the groups respectively. Ten patients conceived after electrocautery and pure FSH therapy while 15 conceived after hMG medication (chi-squared = 1.6464, P = 0.439). The six-cycle cumulative pregnancy rate in the three consecutive groups was 52.1, 55.4, and 38.3%. Four further pregnancies were achieved after treating 10 patients in the electrocautery group with clomiphene citrate (100 mg/day for 5 days) for 25 cycles. The rate of pregnancy wastage in the corresponding groups was 21.4, 53.3 and 40% (chi-squared = 3.127, P = 0.2039). Ovarian electrocautery is equally effective as hMG and pure FSH in the treatment of PCO patients resistant to clomiphene citrate therapy.