Correlation between the Length of Ovarian Ligament and Ovarian Torsion: A Prospective Study.

Study Objective: The study aimed to evaluate whether there is an association between the ovarian ligament length and ovarian torsion. Design: This is a prospective cohort study. Design Classification: II.2. Setting: The study was conducted in the gynecology department of a university affiliated hospital. Intervention: We measured the length of the ovarian ligaments during laparoscopy. Patients: A total of 56women were recruited, of which 28 women were operated for ovarian torsion (torsion group) and 28 others for other gynecologic conditions (control group). Measurement and Main Results: The study found correlations between ovarian ligament length and ovarian torsion. The length of the right (2.2 +/- 0.6 cm) and left ovarian ligament (2.3 +/- 0.8 cm) in the control patients were similar. Ovarian torsions occurred mainly on the right side (67.9 %). The right ovarian ligament was significantly longer in the torsion group (3.2 +/- 0.9 cm) than in the control group (2.2 +/- 0.6 cm; p < 0.001). Even after exclusion of patients with ovarian cyst, the ovarian ligament was still significantly longer in the torsion group as compared to the control group (3.2 +/- 1.1 vs. 2.2 +/- 0.6 cm respectively, p = 0.01). Conclusion: Our results suggest that increased length of ovarian ligament might be correlated with the development of ovarian torsion. This could be a basis for ovarian ligament fixation or oophoropexy at the time of conservative surgery for ovarian torsion.