Evaluating pain relief methods for adenomyosis treatment

Dienogest may be preferred as standout treatment for mitigating pain in adenomyosis, while GnRH agonists excel at shrinking uterine volume.

Adenomyosis, a benign condition where endometrial tissue grows into the uterine muscle, can be challenging to treat. Although surgery is an option, many patients start with medical treatments. This study reviews and compares the effectiveness of different medical treatments for pain and other symptoms in patients presently not seeking pregnancy.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies from PubMed and EMBASE was conducted, following Cochrane Collaboration guidelines and 12 suitable studies were selected. Key outcomes measured were changes in dysmenorrhea, heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) days, and variations in uterine volume.

Dienogest proved most effective at reducing pain compared to other treatments. GnRH agonists were best at reducing uterine volume. While no clear winner emerged for reducing bleeding days, combined oral contraceptives (COC) performed worse than other treatments.

Dienogest and GnRH agonists demonstrate convincing results for pain relief and uterine volume decline, respectively. However, the limited number of studies may affect the reliability of these findings.