Robotic Surgical Management of Endometriosis: Excision Versus Ablation With Argon Beam Coagulator (ABC)

Patients with known endometriosis based on prior surgical pathology or suspected endometriosis based on symptomatology who plan on undergoing diagnostic laparoscopy will be offered enrollment in the study. They will complete preoperative pain assessments with the tools outlined above. At the time of diagnostic laparoscopy, patients found to have endometriosis will be staged according to the American Society of Reproductive Medicine guidelines. Patients with Stage 4 or deeply infiltrating endometriosis will be excluded from the study. At that point, the patients will be randomized in the operating room to either laparoscopic excision of endometriosis or laparoscopic ablation with the argon beam coagulator. Patients will be stratified according to the presence or absence of the Levonorgestrel-Intrauterine Device.

Pain assessments will be performed immediately postoperatively in the recovery area. Pain assessments will again be performed at 4 weeks, 6 months and 12 months. We will use the VAS pain scale and validated questionnaires.