Thirty-nine infertile patients with laparoscopic diagnosis of
endometriosis were allocated randomly to treatment with
gestrinone 2.5 mg twice weekly (20 patients) or
danazol 600 mg/day (19 patients) for 6 months. If
amenorrhea was not obtained after 1 month of treatment, the
gestrinone dose was increased to 2.5 mg three times a week (7 patients) and the
danazol dose to 800 mg/day (2 patients). One month after the end of the treatment, a repeat laparoscopy was performed only in the women who agreed (7 of the
gestrinone treated group, 9 of the
danazol group). All of the patients were followed for at least 12 months after the end of the treatment, during which time they attempted to conceive. There was a marked improvement of
pain symptoms during the treatment in the patients of both groups. The repeat laparoscopy did not reveal significant differences between the two groups in the reduction of the disease extent. Eighteen months
after treatment suspension, the cumulative pregnancy rate was 33% in the patients treated with
gestrinone and 40% in those treated with
danazol.
Pain symptoms recurred during the follow-up in 57% of the
gestrinone and 53% of the
danazol group. The side effects were more frequent and severe with the
danazol treatment, whereas those caused by
gestrinone were mostly
weight gain and
acne. The results of this study suggest that
gestrinone is as effective as
danazol in the treatment of
infertility associated with
endometriosis and is better tolerated.