Pathophysiology and Possible Iatrogenic Cause of Leiomyomatosis Peritonealis Disseminata

We present a case of leiomyomatosis peritonealis disseminata (LPD) after myoma morcellation and review the literature using the keywords leiomyomatosis peritonealis disseminata and disseminated peritoneal leiomyomatosis. The search was conducted in Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane Database of systematic reviews. We encountered 132 cases of LPD in the English literature; 113 in the reproductive age group, 7 in postmenopausal women, 6 in males, and another in a horse. The possible causes could be divided into hormonal, subperitoneal mesenchymal stem cells, metaplasia, genetic, or iatrogenic after morcellation of myoma during laparoscopic surgery. Our case and 4 others reported in the literature support the contribution of the iatrogenic theory. It appears that LPD could be due to metaplasia of mesenchymal cells of the peritoneum and, in susceptible women, leaving fragments of myoma in the abdominal cavity might contribute to the development of LPD. Accordingly, one should avoid leaving fragments of the uterus or myoma tissue in the abdominal cavity after morcellation. Copyright (C) 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel