The Effect of UPA on Women Ovarian Reserve

The uterine leiomyoma is the most common benign tumor of the female genital tract. The myomas are usually clinically apparent in 25% of patients. Among the latest possible therapeutic options, UPA has proved to be most effective for the medical management of fibroids. Its advent in the clinical practice will probably modify the surgical approach, since UPA could possible place as a preoperative adjunct to surgery but also as medical therapy to avoid surgery. Very recently, the results of the first study on long-term intermittent (18 months) therapy with 10-mg UPA were published, demonstrating that this regimen (four courses of 3 months) maximizes the effect of UPA by inducing a very high rate of amenorrhea and reducing fibroid size.

Long term treatment, however, call in question safety issue that need to be explore. In patients treated by UPA, Estradiol under 5-mg and 10-mg doses remained at midfollicular levels after the first course of therapy, avoiding menopausal symptoms, as frequently observed in the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH-) agonist group. No data have been published about Estradiol levels at the end of second, third and fourth courses of UPA. Moreover, no data have been published about the effect of UPA on FSH or AMH levels nor on ovarian antral follicle count (AFC) or vascularization indexes during and after treatment. Considering that in young women of reproductive age (under 40 years old), desiring pregnancy, UPA has been proposed to avoid or postpone surgery, also in a long-term administration program, data about its effect on women ovarian reserve are urgently needed.

For these reasons, data on biochemical (AMH, FSH and E2) and 3D ultrasonographic (VI, FI, AFC) parameters of women treated by UP are needed to assess the effect of the drug in terms of ovarian reserve modification.