title: Prevalence and histologic diagnosis of adnexal cysts in postmenopausal women: an autopsy study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this autopsy study was to examine the prevalence and histologic condition of adnexal cysts in postmenopausal women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Adnexa of 234 postmenopausal women who had died from nongynecologic diseases were examined by the team pathologist.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ovarian cysts were found in 36 of the women (15.4%). Nine women (3.8%) had ovarian cysts with a diameter between 20 and < or =50 mm; 4 women (1.7%) had cysts that were >50 mm in diameter. Four women had bilateral ovarian cysts. Paraovarian cysts were found in 11 women (4.7%). All cysts were benign, except for 1 woman, who had bilateral serous cystadenoma of borderline type. Macroscopically, the borderline cysts were multilocular with mean diameters of 60 mm and 15 mm, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Because of the high prevalence of benign adnexal cysts, the identification of small unilocular cysts in postmenopausal women should be regarded as a normal finding.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecological Oncology, The Norwegian Radium Hospital, Oslo, Norway. anne.dorum@dnr.uio.no
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dørum
authors.forename: Gustav P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Blom
authors.forename: Erling
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ekerhovd
authors.forename: Seth
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Granberg
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001344:Autopsy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009664:Norway / Q000453:epidemiology; D010048:Ovarian Cysts / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D017698:Postmenopause; D015995:Prevalence