The practicability and surgeons' subjective experiences with vaginal danazol before an operative hysteroscopy

This randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled study compared the usefulness of danazol 400 mg vaginally versus 600 mg orally in women as a preoperative preparation for hysteroscopic surgery. Ninety-one fertile women were randomly allocated to Group A (46 patients received 400 mg of danazol placed into the posterior vaginal fornix and three oral tablets of commercially available folic acid as a placebo), and Group B [45 women treated with 600 mg of danazol orally (200 mg three times daily) and two vaginal tablets of Lactobacillus rhamnosus as a placebo]. The patients underwent an operative hysteroscopy, transvaginal sonography, blood tests, and a histological assay. A visual analog scale (VAS) score to compute the degree of the surgeon's satisfaction was used. The outcome measures were as follows: an evaluation of the changes in the endometrial thickness, the prevalence of endometrial atrophy, changes in the blood tests, any collateral effects, the degree of difficulty and view, the duration of the surgical procedure, any complications during the operative hysteroscopy and associated side effects, and the surgeon's satisfaction with the endometrial preparation. The vaginal administration route was associated with a more pronounced effect on the endometrial thickness. Significantly more patients receiving vaginal danazol (45/46) had a hypotrophic endometrium than those receiving oral danazol (37/45, P < 0.01). In addition, the patients receiving danazol vaginally had a shorter operating time, lower infusion volume, fewer side effects, and a higher surgeon satisfaction. Vaginal danazol adequately prepares the endometrium for an operative hysteroscopy by thinning the endometrium effectively with few side effects and little impact on the metabolic parameters. © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.