Short-term outcomes of ovarian vein embolization with adjunctive local sclerotherapy in patients with pelvic venous disorder and vulvar varicosities: a single-center retrospective experience.

Objective: To describe the short-term safety, procedural characteristics, and clinical outcomes of ovarian vein embolization with adjunctive local sclerotherapy in a selected subgroup of women with pelvic venous disorder presenting with vulvar/external genital varicosities. Methods: This retrospective single-center experience included 16 women with pelvic venous disorder presenting with concomitant vulvar/external genital varicosities who were treated between 2019 and 2023. The treatment strategy was primarily directed at pelvic venous reflux with ovarian vein embolization, followed by adjunctive local sclerotherapy for symptomatic vulvar/external genital varicosities during the same interventional session. Clinical assessment included symptom evaluation, visual analog scale (VAS), pelvic venous clinical severity score (PVCSS), and follow-up imaging. Results: The median follow-up duration was 7.0 months (IQR, 6.0-8.5 months). Technical success was achieved in all patients. Mean VAS decreased from 5.8 ± 1.8 before treatment to 0.9 ± 0.9 at follow-up, and mean PVCSS decreased from 10.7 ± 2.3 to 4.0 ± 1.6. Complete symptom relief was observed in 9 patients (56%) and partial relief in 7 patients (44%). No patient required reintervention during follow-up, and no major procedure-related adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Ovarian vein embolization with adjunctive local sclerotherapy was technically feasible and was associated with short-term symptom improvement in women with pelvic venous disorder presenting with vulvar/external genital varicosities.