Detection of Benign Intracav

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

  • 7/28/2019 Detection of Benign Intracav

    1/5

    Detection of Benign Intracavitary Lesions in Postmenopausal

    Women with Abnormal Uterine Bleeding: A Prospective

    Comparative Study on Outpatient Hysteroscopy and Blind Biopsy

    Stefano Angioni, MD*, Alessandro Loddo, MD, Francesca Milano, MD, Bruno Piras, MD,Luigi Minerba, MD, Gian Benedetto Melis, MDFrom the Division of Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Pathophysiology of Human Reproduction, Department of Surgery, Maternal-Fetal Medicine and

    Imaging (Drs. Angioni, Loddo, Milano, Piras, and Melis), and the Department of Hygiene and Public Health (Dr. Minerba), University of Cagliari,

    Cagliari, Italy.

    ABSTRACT Study Objective: To evaluate the specificity of blind biopsy in detecting benign intracavitary lesions as causes of

    postmenopausal bleeding in comparison with directed biopsy via hysteroscopy.

    Design: Prospective trial without randomization (Canadian Task Force classification II-1).

    Setting: University hospital.

    Patients: Three hundred nineteen postmenopausal women with abnormal uterine bleeding.

    Interventions: All patients underwent both blind biopsy (Novaks curette) and directed biopsy via hysteroscopy (after at

    least a week). All patients with benign intracavitary lesions underwent operative hysteroscopy to enable the removal of

    polyps and intracavitary myomas or endometrial resection if required. All patients with pathologic reports of complex

    hyperplasia and atypical hyperplasia (20 patients) underwent vaginal hysterectomy with bilateral adnexectomy. All patients

    with histology reports of endometrial carcinoma (15 patients) underwent abdominal hysterectomy, bilateral adnexectomy,

    and pelvic lymphadenectomy. Histopathologic findings from endometrial specimens obtained after operative hysteroscopy

    or uterine specimens obtained after hysterectomy were used as a reference test to establish the prevalence of disease.

    Measurements and Main Results: The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and positive and negative predictive values ofblind biopsy and hysteroscopy were assessed to distinguish benign intracavitary formations such as polyps, submucous

    myomas, and endometrial hyperplasia in postmenopausal patients with abnormal uterine bleeding. The level of agreement

    was evaluated by use of the coefficient of concordance . Blind biopsy showed a sensitivity of 11% and a specificity of 93%,

    with an accuracy of 59% in detecting endometrial polyps, a sensitivity and specificity of 13% and 100%, respectively, with

    an accuracy of 98% for submucous myomas, and values of 25%, 92%, and 80%, respectively, in diagnosing hyperplasia.

    On the other hand, hysteroscopy demonstrated a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 97%, with an accuracy of 91% in

    diagnosing endometrial polyps, a sensitivity and specificity of 100% and 98%, respectively, with an accuracy of 99% for

    submucous myomas. The coefficient of concordance (95% CI) was 0.12 for blind biopsy and 0.82 for hysteroscopy,

    corresponding, respectively, to slight concordance and almost perfect agreement with final pathologic diagnosis.

    Conclusions: Blind biopsy (Novaks curette) demonstrates very low sensitivity and accuracy in the diagnosis of benign

    focal intracavitary lesions. Hysteroscopy is confirmed as the gold standard in the assessment of abnormal uterine bleeding

    in menopause, permitting the elimination of the false-negative results of blind biopsy through direct visualization of the

    uterine cavity and the performance of targeted biopsy in case of doubt. Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology (2008)15, 8791 2008 AAGL. All rights reserved.

    Keywords: Endometrial biopsy; Abnormal uterine bleeding; Hysteroscopy; Endometrial polyp; Myoma

    The authors have no commercial, proprietary, or financial interest in the

    products or companies described in this article.

    Corresponding author: Stefano Angioni, MD, Division of Gynaecology,

    Obstetrics and Pathophysiology of Human Reproduction, Department of

    Surgery, Maternal-Fetal Medicine and Imaging, University of Cagliari, via

    Ospedale, 09124, Cagliari, Italy

    E-mail: [email protected]

    Submitted August 7, 2007. Accepted for publication October 13, 2007.

    Available at www.sciencedirect.com and www.jmig.org

    1553-4650/$ -see front matter 2008 AAGL. All rights reserved.

    doi:10.1016/j.jmig.2007.10.014

    http://localhost/var/www/apps/conversion/tmp/scratch_6/[email protected]://www.sciencedirect.com/http://www.jmig.org/http://localhost/var/www/apps/conversion/tmp/scratch_6/[email protected]://www.jmig.org/http://www.sciencedirect.com/
  • 7/28/2019 Detection of Benign Intracav

    2/5

    Postmenopausal bleeding represents one of the most com-

    mon reasons for which women visit the gynecologist. After

    menopause, all uterine bleeding is considered atypical (ab-

    normal uterine bleeding [AUB]) and should be rapidly in-

    vestigated to exclude endometrial carcinoma, featuring

    bleeding in 95% of cases [1,2]. However, frequent causes of

    uterine bleeding are represented by atrophy, dysfunctional,benign lesions and only in 7% to 10% of cases, endometrial

    carcinoma [3].

    Notwithstanding therefore the importance of diagnosing

    malignancy, all other causes of bleeding should be detected.

    Several methods have been studied to assess AUB, includ-

    ing transvaginal ultrasound, outpatient hysteroscopy, hys-

    terosonography, office endometrial biopsy, and dilatation

    and curettage (D&C). Until fairly recently, the latter was

    considered the gold standard for the assessment of AUB.

    Many reports have underlined the efficacy of this procedure

    in detecting endometrial carcinoma, although not in detect-

    ing benign lesions [4]. Transvaginal sonography has facili-tated the evaluation of endometrial thickness and discrimi-

    nation between atrophy, hyperplasia, and malignancy,

    leading to an increased frequency in diagnosis of endome-

    trial polyps and submucous myomas. Interesting trials

    aimed at improving this method have been attempted with

    hysterosonography, injecting normal saline solution into the

    uterine cavity [5]. Indeed, hysteroscopy is an extremely

    important tool, enhancing the possibility of correctly diag-

    nosing AUB by means of a minimally invasive approach

    performed without anesthetics on an outpatient basis. Diag-

    nostic hysteroscopy with or without endometrial sampling

    represents the new gold standard applied to exclude endo-metrial disease [6]. Hysteroscopy is more effective in as-

    sessing abnormal uterine bleeding than blind techniques

    such as D&C [7,8]. The use of blind biopsy in diagnosing

    benign diseases in postmenopausal women is believed to be

    of poor value, although to date no large prospective studies

    have been reported in the literature.

    Materials and Methods

    From January 1992 through October 2004, at the Depart-

    ment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Cagliari,Italy, a series of 319 postmenopausal women with AUB

    underwent both blind biopsy (Novaks curette) and diag-

    nostic hysteroscopy. A woman was considered postmeno-

    pausal if she reported a duration of at least 12 months of

    amenorrhea after the age of 45 years, provided that amen-

    orrhea had not commenced after medication or disease. All

    patients underwent blind biopsy with a Novaks curette at

    first evaluation, and a specimen was obtained for his-

    topathologic evaluation.

    After at least 1 week, all patients underwent diagnostic

    hysteroscopy. All hysteroscopies were performed with a

    specific procedure for gynecologic diagnosis without gen-eral or local anesthesia. Patients were placed in the lithot-

    omy position and after bimanual examination, the cervix

    was visualized through a speculum; a rigid hysteroscope (5

    mm) was inserted into the uterine cavity without dilating the

    cervix or using the tenaculum. The cavity was distended by

    supplying carbon dioxide through a Hamou hysteroflator

    (Karl Storz, Tuttlingen, Germany) with mean flow of 30 to

    35 mL/min and with a pressure limit of 100 mm Hg. During

    hysteroscopy, the uterine cavity was described according to

    a standard record, which included a description of polyps,

    submucous myomas, hyperplasias, endometrial cancer, and

    normal/atrophic endometrium.

    All patients with benign intracavitary lesions diagnosed

    according to histopathologic reports obtained with a No-

    vaks curette or diagnosed by outpatient hysteroscopy un-

    derwent operative hysteroscopy. The latter procedure en-

    abled the removal of polyps and intracavitary myomas and

    endometrial resection or ablation if required (in case of

    simple hyperplasia). Overall, 181 women underwent hys-teroscopic resection.

    Histopathologic study findings from endometrial speci-

    mens obtained after operative hysteroscopy were considered

    the reference test in establishing the prevalence of specific

    conditions. One hundred three patients did not show any

    disease at diagnostic hysteroscopy and underwent a re-

    peated endometrial biopsy.

    All patients with histologic reports of complex hyperpla-

    sia and atypical hyperplasia (20 patients) obtained with a

    Novaks curette or hysteroscopy (7 patients) underwent

    vaginal hysterectomy with bilateral adnexectomy [9]. More-

    over, all patients receiving histologic reports of endometrialcarcinoma (15 patients) underwent abdominal hysterec-

    tomy, bilateral adnexectomy, and pelvic lymphadenectomy

    [10]. In women undergoing hysterectomy, pathologic diag-

    nosis used to evaluate the accuracy of both blind biopsy and

    hysteroscopy was derived from the uterine specimen.

    Statistical Analysis

    Students t test was used to compare demographic char-

    acteristics. Sensitivity and specificity with a 95% confi-

    dence interval, accuracy, and negative and positive predic-

    tive values of blind biopsy and hysteroscopy indistinguishing benign intracavitary formations, such as pol-

    yps, submucous myomas, and hyperplasias in patients with

    AUB were assessed. The 2 and Fishers exact tests were

    used to compare sensitivity of the 2 diagnostic methods in

    the diagnosis of the 3 benign conditions.

    The level of agreement was calculated with the index,

    the difference between observed and expected agreement as

    a fraction of the maximum difference [11]. The maximum

    value of was 1, representing perfect agreement, and the

    minimum value was 0, corresponding to an agreement only

    because of chance. Values of exceeding 0.81, values

    between 0.61 and 0.80, values between 0.41 and 0.60,values between 0.21 and 0.40, values between 0.01 and 0.20

    88 Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology, Vol 15, No 1, January/February 2008

  • 7/28/2019 Detection of Benign Intracav

    3/5

    represent, respectively, almost perfect, substantial, moder-

    ate, fair, and slight agreement [12].

    Power calculations performed using data obtained from

    published studies [13,14] estimated that only 98 patients per

    group were required to observe significant differences in

    sensitivity of detecting benign intracavitary lesions (primary

    outcome) between the 2 diagnostic procedures, resulting ina 95% power ( 0.05 and 0.05). Data were stored

    and analyzed with the use of Statistical Program for Social

    Sciences release 12.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL).

    Results

    The group-specific demographic characteristics of the

    patients are shown in Table 1. The median age of women

    was 54 years (range 4688), and median time elapsed since

    menopause was 10 years (133). Postmenopausal bleeding

    was defined as any vaginal bleeding in a postmenopausalwoman not receiving hormone replacement therapy (HRT)

    or as unscheduled bleeding in a postmenopausal woman

    receiving HRT. Twenty-five of the women (8%) recruited in

    this study were receiving HRT.

    Final pathologic reports obtained following hystero-

    scopic resection, hysterectomy, or targeted biopsies on hys-

    teroscopy are reported in Table 2. We found 133 cases of

    polyps (41.7%), 8 myomas (2.5%), 40 simple nonatypical

    hyperplasias (12.5%), 17 complex or atypical hyperplasias

    (5.3%), 15 endometrial cancers (4.7%), and 106 atrophic

    endometrium (33.3%). Diagnostic hysteroscopy and blind

    biopsy diagnosis are shown in the same table. In 3 cases, ahistologic diagnosis of normal endometrium was found after

    hysteroscopic resection whereas diagnostic hysteroscopy

    gave a diagnosis of hyperplasia. In 77 women (24.0%),

    blind endometrial biopsy provided insufficient tissue for

    pathologic assessment. Reports diagnosed 28 cases of pol-

    yps (8.7%), 1 myoma (0.3%), 34 hyperplasias (10.6%), 15

    endometrial cancers (4.7%), and 164 results of normal en-

    dometrium (51.4%).

    With outpatient hysteroscopy, a diagnosis was made for

    all patients. We thus diagnosed 131 cases of polyps (41%),

    10 myomas (3.1%), 60 hyperplasias (18.8%), 15 endome-

    trial cancers (4.7%), and 103 findings of normal endome-trium (32.2%).

    The results of the statistical analysis for blind biopsy

    procedures are shown in Table 3. We found an accuracy of

    59%, a sensitivity of 11%, a specificity of 93%, and a

    positive predictive value (PPV) of 54% and a negative

    predictive value (NPV) of 59% in detecting endometrial

    polyps. We found an accuracy of 98%, a sensitivity of 13%,

    a specificity of 100%, and a PPV of 100% and NPV of 98%

    for submucous myomas. We found an accuracy of 80%, a

    sensitivity of 25%, specificity of 92%, and a PPV of 41%

    and NPV of 85% in diagnosing hyperplasia.

    In Table 4, we showed that hysteroscopy demonstratessensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of 89%, 93%, 90%, T

    able

    1

    Group-specificdemographiccharacteristicso

    fthepatients

    Patientswithpolyps

    Patientswithhyperplasia

    Patientswithsubmucous

    myomas

    Patientswithendometrial

    cancer

    Pa

    tientswithnormal/

    atrophicendometrium

    Age(years

    SD)[95%

    CI]

    56.3

    7.4

    [58.961.7

    ]

    57.1

    7.9

    [54.359.8

    ]

    54.3

    3.0

    6[51.756.8]

    65.0

    1

    7.4

    *[55.664.5

    ]

    59

    .9

    7.7

    [58.561.3

    ]

    Ageatmenopause(years

    SD)[95%

    CI]

    51.6

    4.1

    [50.852.3

    ]

    50.7

    3.6

    [49.451.9

    ]

    50.6

    5.2

    [46.254.9]

    50.8

    5.7

    [47.354.2

    ]

    50

    .4

    4.6

    [49.551.2

    ]

    Timeelapsesincemenopause(years

    SD)

    [95%

    CI]

    8.7

    8.0

    1[7.210.1

    ]

    7.7

    6.6

    [5.410.0

    ]

    5.5

    5.7

    [3.710.2]

    14.2

    8.4

    *[9.119.3

    ]

    9

    .7

    8.3

    [8.111.2

    ]

    Parity

    (

    SD)[95%

    CI]

    2.6

    7

    1.4

    [2.42.9

    ]

    2.8

    7

    1.74[2.33.5

    ]

    3.8

    5

    2.5

    4[1.75.9]

    2.8

    1

    1.4

    [1.93.6

    ]

    2.95

    2.1

    3[2.53.3

    ]

    HRTtherapy(%)

    8.8

    0

    12.5

    7.6

    4.8

    *

    p.0

    1endometrialcancerversuspolyps,hyperplasia,myomas,andnormal/atrophicendo

    metrium.

    89Angioni et al. Benign Intracavitary Lesions in Women with AUB

  • 7/28/2019 Detection of Benign Intracav

    4/5

    and 92%, respectively, in diagnosing endometrial polyps,

    with an accuracy of 91%. Hysteroscopy has sensitivity,

    specificity, PPV, and NPV of 100%, 99%, 80%, and 100%,

    respectively, for submucous myomas, with an accuracy of

    99%. The worst result is in estimating hyperplasia, with

    values of 74%, 93%, 70%, and 94%, respectively, and an

    accuracy of 90%.

    The 2 comparison between sensitivities of blind biopsy

    and hysteroscopy in the diagnosis of polyps and hyperplasia

    were 159.53 (p .001) and 27.51 (p .001). Fishers exact

    test used to compare sensitivity in diagnosing myomas was

    statistically significant (p .001).

    The coefficients of concordance (95% CI) were 0.12

    (CI: 0.050.18) for blind biopsy and 0.82 (CI: 0.770.87)

    for hysteroscopy corresponding, respectively, to slight con-

    cordance and almost perfect agreement with final pathology

    diagnosis. values were both statistically significant (z

    3.9 for blind biopsy and z 22.8 for hysteroscopy), as well

    as the difference between the 2 independent values of (z

    16.28).

    Discussion

    An endometrial sampling procedure represents the gold

    standard to be applied in diagnostic evaluation of all women

    presenting with AUB. The gynecologist has a variety of

    tools at his/her disposal for this examination. Endometrial

    biopsy and D&C are endometrial sampling procedures. The

    development of equipment and techniques for office-basedendometrial biopsy challenged the need for hospital-per-

    formed diagnostic D&C requiring anesthesia. Office endo-

    metrial biopsy offers a number of advantages over D&C. It

    can be performed with little or no cervical dilation, and

    anesthesia is generally not required. Moreover, the cost is

    approximately one-tenth that of a hospital D&C. Two meta-

    analyses have clearly emphasized the satisfactory sensitivity

    and specificity of endometrial biopsy in the diagnosis of

    endometrial cancer in women with AUB [15,16]. However,

    all sampling devices perform better when pathologic studyis global rather than focal. Curettage followed by blind

    extraction with Randall polyp forceps improves the rate of

    detection of polyps over curettage alone [17].

    The aim of our study was to evaluate the sensitivity and

    level of agreement of blind biopsy in detecting benign

    diseases in more than 300 postmenopausal women with

    AUB. Results obtained revealed how 67% of women with

    postmenopausal bleeding had a pathologic endometrium.

    Blind biopsy revealed an exceedingly low sensitivity and

    accuracy in the diagnosis of benign intracavitary lesions and

    only a slight concordance with final diagnosis. In particular,

    blind biopsy revealed an extremely high number of false-negative results, frequently proving to be of scarce diagnos-

    tic value because of the paucity of the sample. On the

    contrary hysteroscopy showed a high sensitivity, corre-

    sponding almost completely with final diagnosis. Hysteros-

    copy was confirmed as the gold standard in the assessment

    of AUB in menopause. This procedure facilitated elimina-

    tion of false-negative results obtained at blind biopsy, al-

    lowing a direct visualization of the uterine cavity and per-

    forming of targeted biopsy in case of doubt. Hysteroscopy

    provides for direct visualization of the endometrial cavity,

    thereby allowing targeted biopsy or excision of lesions

    identified during the procedure. However, application ofthis procedure requires greater skills and is more costly and

    invasive than most other methods used in endometrial as-

    sessment. Multiple studies have shown that hysteroscopy

    may enable detection of focal lesions of the endometrial

    lining missed by D&C alone [18,19]. Therefore, for women

    at risk for endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial cancer,

    both procedures or at least targeted biopsy should be per-

    formed [20,21]. Moreover, in spite of the low risk of cancer

    presented by an endometrial polyp, accurate diagnosis can

    be provided only by means of biopsy. Nevertheless, several

    atypical features of polyps are readily visible at hysteros-

    copy, at times enhancing detection of malignant polyps[22,23]. Saline solution infusion sonography has recently

    Table 4

    Hysteroscopy statistical results in the diagnosis of benign pathol-

    ogy

    Hysteroscopy Polyps Myomas Hyperplasias

    Sensitivity, % (95% CI) 89 (8293) 100 (68100) 74 (6284)

    Specificity, % (95% CI) 93 (8896) 99 (98100) 93 (8995)

    Accuracy, % 91 99 90PPV, % 90 80 70

    NPV, % 92 100 94

    NPV negative predictive value; PPV positive predictive value.

    Table 2

    Comparison between final histopathology reports and the diagno-

    sis obtained with blind biopsies and hysteroscopy

    Blind biopsy

    (Novak)

    No. (%)

    Hysteroscopy

    No. (%)

    Histopathology

    No. (%)

    Endometrial polyps 28 (8.7) 131 (41.1) 133 (41.7)Hyperplasias 34 (10.7) 60 (18.8) 57 (17.8)

    Submucous myomas 1 (0.3) 10 (3.1) 8 (2.5)

    Endometrial cancers 15 (4.7) 15 (4.7) 15 (4.7)

    Normal endometrium 164 (51.4) 103 (32.3) 106 (33.3)

    Not diagnostic 77 (24) 0 0

    Table 3

    Blind biopsy statistical results in the diagnosis of benign pathol-

    ogies

    Blind biopsy (Novak) Polyps Myomas Hyperplasias

    Sensitivity, % (95% CI) 11 (719) 13 (247) 25 (1637)

    Specificity, % (95% CI) 93 (8896) 100 (98100) 92 (8794)

    Accuracy, % 59 98 80

    PPV, % 54 100 41

    NPV, % 59 98 85

    NPV negative predicative value; PPV positive predictive value.

    90 Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology, Vol 15, No 1, January/February 2008

  • 7/28/2019 Detection of Benign Intracav

    5/5

    displayed a diagnostic efficacy equivalent to hysteroscopy

    in detecting polyps and intrauterine myomas, although its

    use in diagnosing endometrial hyperplasia and cancer in

    postmenopausal women with AUB is not recommended,

    because the latter should be submitted to histologic confir-

    mation [24].

    Our prospective study clearly demonstrates that focalendometrial abnormalities are frequent causes of AUB in

    postmenopausal women, underlining the inappropriateness

    of blind biopsy as a diagnostic approach. The routine use of

    blind biopsy should be abandoned in women with post-

    menopausal AUB. After transvaginal ultrasonography these

    patients should be studied by means of diagnostic hysteros-

    copy, with targeted oriented biopsy performed if needed.

    References

    1. Awwad JT, Thot TL, Schiff I. Abnormal uterine bleeding in the

    perimenopause. Int J Fertil Menopausal Stud. 1993;38:261269.2. Jutras ML, Cowan BD. Abnormal bleeding in the climacteric Obstet

    Gynecol Clin North Am. 1990;17:409 425.

    3. Mencaglia L, Valle RF, Perino A, et al. Endometrial carcinoma and its

    precursors: early detection and treatment. Int J Gynaecol Obstet.

    1990;31:107116.

    4. Grimes DA. Diagnostic dilation and curettage: a reappraisal. Am J

    Obstet Gynecol. 1982;142:16.

    5. Goldstein SR. Use of ultrasonohysterography for triage of perimeno-

    pausal patients with unexplained uterine bleeding. Am J Obstet Gy-

    necol. 1994;170:565570.

    6. Bronz L. Hysteroscopy in the assessment of postmenopausal bleeding.

    Contrib Gynecol Obstet. 2000;20:5159.

    7. Nagele F, OConnor H, Davies A, et al. 2500 outpatient diagnostic

    hysteroscopies. Obstet Gynecol. 1996;88:8792.8. Brooks PG, Serden SP. Hysteroscopic findings after unsuccessful

    dilatation and curettage for abnormal uterine bleeding. Am J Obstet

    Gynecol. 1988;158(Pt1):13541357.

    9. Wells M. Hyperplasias of the endometrium. In: Gershenson DM,

    McGuire WP, Gore M, Quinn MA, Thomas G, eds. Gynecologic

    cancer, controversies in management. Philadelphia, Elsevier, 2004,p.

    249257

    10. Creasman WT, Odicino F, Maisonneuve P, et al. Carcinoma of the

    corpus uteri. FIGO 6th Annual Report on the Results of Treatment in

    Gynecological Cancer. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2006;95(Suppl

    1):S105S143.

    11. Cohen J. A coefficient of agreement for nominal scales. Educ Psychol

    Measurement. 1960;20:3746.

    12. Landis JR, Koch GG. The measurement of observer agreement for

    categorical data. Biometrics. 1977;33:159174.

    13. Loverro G, Bettocchi S, Cormio G, et al. Transvaginal sonography

    and hysteroscopy in postmenopausal uterine bleeding. Maturitas.1999;33:139144.

    14. Whitley E, Ball J. Statistics review 4: sample size calculations. Crit

    Care. 2002;6:335341.

    15. Dijkhuizen FP, Mol BW, Brolmann HA, et al. The accuracy of

    endometrial sampling in the diagnosis of patients with endometrial

    carcinoma and hyperplasia: a meta-analysis.Cancer. 2000;89:1765

    1772.

    16. Clark TJ, Mann CH, Shah N, et al. Accuracy of outpatient endometrial

    biopsy in the diagnosis of endometrial cancer: a systematic quantita-

    tive review. BJOG. 2002;109:313321.

    17. Gebauer G, Hafner A, Siebzehnrubl E, et al. Role of hysteroscopy in

    detection and extraction of endometrial polyps: results of a prospec-

    tive study. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2001;184:59 63.

    18. Gimpelson RJ, Rappold HO. A comparative study between panoramic

    hysteroscopy with directed biopsies and dilatation and curettage. Am J

    Obstet Gynecol. 1988;158(Pt 1):489492.

    19. Epstein E, Ramirez A, Skoog L, et al. Dilatation and curettage fails to

    detect most focal lesions in the uterine cavity in women with post-

    menopausal bleeding. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2001;80:

    11311136.

    20. Garuti G, Cellani F, Colonnelli M, et al. Hysteroscopically targeted

    biopsies compared with blind samplings in endometrial assessment of

    menopausal women taking tamoxifen for breast cancer. J Am Assoc

    Gynecol Laparosc. 2004;11:6267.

    21. Garuti G, Cellani F, Garzia D, et al. Accuracy of hysteroscopic

    diagnosis of endometrial hyperplasia: a retrospective study of 323

    patients. J Minim Invasive Gynecol. 2005;12:247253.

    22. Ben-Arie A, Goldchmit C, Laviv Y, et al. The malignant potential of

    endometrial polyps. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2004;115:

    206210.

    23. Fernandez-Parra J, Rodriguez Oliver A, Lopez Criado S, et al. Hys-

    teroscopic evaluation of endometrial polyps. Int J Gynaecol Obstet.

    2006;95:144148.

    24. Jansen FW, de Kroon CD, van Dongen H, et al. Diagnostic hyster-

    oscopy and saline infusion sonography: prediction of intrauterine

    polyps and myomas. J Minim Invasive Gynecol. 2006;13:320324.

    91Angioni et al. Benign Intracavitary Lesions in Women with AUB