Importance of the field: Medical therapy is the most commonly used treatment for endometriosis. In particular, the administration of hormonal therapies aims to improve symptoms with minimal adverse effects.
Areas covered in this review: Observational and randomized studies evaluating the efficacy of medical therapy on symptoms associated with endometriosis were reviewed. We searched Medline, Embase and the Cochrane Library up to December 2009.
What the reader will gain: The reader will obtain information on the available medical therapies used to treat endometriosis-related symptoms either after surgery or as an alternative to the surgical excision of endometriosis. The effectiveness of therapies, the dose of drugs, the length of treatment and the adverse effects are examined.
Take home message: Medical therapies can efficaciously reduce the severity of pain symptoms caused by endometriosis. Recurrence of symptoms is common after discontinuation of medical therapies; therefore, the choice of the therapy should be based not only on the improvements of symptoms but also on the potential adverse effects and patients' satisfaction.