ResearchGynecologyAbdominal wall endometriosis: 12 years of experience at a large academic institution
Section snippets
Materials and Methods
Following approval by the University of Pittsburgh Institutional Review Board, a retrospective review was performed of all hospital and office charts of patients treated for AWE at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center between March 2001 and April 2013. Cases were identified by International Classification of Diseases, ninth revision, codes and confirmed via pathological specimen diagnosis (Figure 1). Cases were excluded if endometriosis was limited to the peritoneal layer alone.
Chart
Results
A search based on the International Classification of Diseases, ninth revision, identified 98 potential subjects of which 90 records were available for review. An additional 25 subjects were excluded for either lack of pathologically confirmed endometriosis or endometriosis limited to the peritoneal cavity. Ultimately, 65 subjects who underwent the excision of pathologically confirmed AWE by a variety of subspecialty surgeons at our institution between March 2001 and April 2013 were analyzed.
Comment
Our retrospective review identified 65 cases of pathology-confirmed AWE over 12 years. A large majority of our patients were white, overweight or obese, and multiparous, which likely represents the population demographics within which this study was performed.13 Our hypothesis prior to initiation of this study was that increased numbers of cesarean sections with further distortion of tissue planes and anatomy would increase depth of involvement at time of excision and/or decrease time to
Acknowledgment
We thank Dr Gabriela Quiroga-Garza for providing pathology photos.
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2022, Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North AmericaCitation Excerpt :Endometrial cells are iatrogenically transplanted into the surgical incision, and over time the endometriosis grows and proliferates in response to hormonal stimulation. The incidence of AWE following a cesarean delivery is 0.5% to 1% and is not related to the number of prior cesarean deliveries, timing of delivery, or reason for cesarean delivery.3,4,22 AWE after cesarean delivery presents a singular nodule in the apices of the Pfannenstiel incision without concurrent pelvic endometriosis.
The authors report no conflict of interest.
Reprints not available from the authors.
Cite this article as: Ecker AM, Donnellan NM, Shepherd JP, et al. Abdominal wall endometriosis: 12 years of experience at a large academic institution. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2014;211:363.e1-5.