Basically, there are three ways a surgeon can remove or destroy the endometriosis. Endometriosis can be excised, coagulated or vaporized. Excision means to cut around and remove. Vaporization is the process by which solid and liquid is turned into a gaseous form. The water turns into steam and in the process expands the volume over a thousand fold resulting in water vapor and cellular proteins literally going up in smoke.
Excision offers several advantages.
It can quickly remove large amounts of tissue. It does not damage or alter the appearance of the underlying tissue. This is an important point for the following reason. Whenever tissue is removed, the remaining underlying tissue must be assessed to determine if all of the endometriosis was removed or if deeper disease is still present. The primary disadvantage of excision is that it is fairly non-selective.