comparative study of single dose, double-dose methotrexate and surgical management of ectopic pregnancy regarding safety, efficacy and tubal patency

ABSTRACT

To evaluate the safety, efficacy of two Meth-otrexate [MTX] regimens for treatment of ectopic pregnancy [EP] and determine the future fertility after medical and surgical management of ectopic pregnancy. 75 cases with EP, 52 were stable and eligible for medical treatment. 24 cases received MTX 50mg/m2, additional dose was given one week later if B-HCG did not decline by 15% between day 4 and 7, while 28 cases received MTX 50mg/m[2] on days 0 and 4, additional doses were given on day 7 and/or on day 11 if HCG levels did not decrease by 15% during the follow-up period. 23 cases underwent surgery. Hysterosalpingogram [HSG] was performed to assess future fertility of patients after receiving treatment for EP. Overall success rate for single-dose and double-dose protocol was 79% and 85.7% respectively. The difference in success rate between the two regimens was most evident at B-HCG concentrations between 2000-5000mIU/mL; 75% for the single dose regimen and 85.7% for the two-dose regimen which favor using the two-dose regimen in this category of patients. Treatment was well tolerated in both groups, most side effects were mild and transient. Regarding future fertility; tubal patency was 94.2% after medical treatment and 82.6% after salpingectomy. The 2-dose protocol is a hybrid between the two previously established protocols; the single dose and the multi-dose MTX. It may optimize the balance between convenience and efficacy. Single-dose regimen is most suitable for low B-HCG <2000mIU/mL mIU/mL, the 2-dose regimen is more suitable for higher B-HCG 2000-5000, while B-HCG >5000mIU/mL has a high failure rate with medical treatment. In a limted number of patients, no safety concerns were noted with either the single-dose or the 2-dose protocols. Medical treatment should be offered to stable patients whenever feasible because it preserves their future fertility meanwhile cost effective