Study objective: To examine transvaginal hydrolaparoscopy (THL) practices in French tertiary care centers.
Design: Prospective longitudinal study (Canadian Task Force classification III).
Setting: University hospital in France.
Participants: Gynecology and obstetrics departments of all 48 French teaching hospitals.
Interventions: Practice of THL using a 8-item questionnaire.
Measurements and main results: Main outcome measure was practice, indications, and complications of THL in French tertiary care centers. Between October 2005 and March 2006, the departments were sent an 8-item questionnaire on the use of diagnostic and operative THL. In all, 38 (79%) hospitals completed the questionnaire. THL was or is still used in 20 (53%) departments. The main reason given by the 18 departments that never used THL was that it was "less informative than laparoscopy." Only 8 (40%) of 20 departments with experience of THL continued to use the procedure routinely. The main reason given for abandoning THL was its limited operative potential. Among the 8 departments that continued to use THL, 6 used operative THL (mainly for ovarian drilling). Among the 30 departments that answered the item on the likely future place of THL, only 6 (20%) considered that THL would continue to be performed.
Conclusion: Few French teaching hospitals routinely use THL. Further data on THL, and especially its cost effectiveness, are needed to clarify its place to evaluate female fertility.