Vagina, ovaries, bladder, rectum: so many organs that can be affected by endometriosis, a gynecological pathology that causes inflammatory lesions. In question: the invasion of these organs by uterine lining tissue, called the endometrium.
Previous studies had already shown that endometriosis can cause infertility. A new large-scale study conducted on 750 women who have already been pregnant, shows that the disease also significantly increases the risk of early miscarriage.
“Concretely, this study concerned 750 women who had already been pregnant. All of them went to Cochin hospital, in the gynecology department headed by Prof. Chapron, for a benign gynecological operation. On the occasion of this operation, their surgeon took the opportunity to check whether they suffered from endometriosis, by looking for the characteristic lesions caused by the disease on the tissues of the pelvic cavity.The results of this diagnostic examination showed that 284 of them were endometriotic, the 466 others being free from the disease “ explain the researchers of Unit 1016 of Inserm (Paris Cochin) in a press release.
10% more miscarriages
The researchers then immersed themselves in the results of the preoperative questionnaire where these women had notably indicated their possible history of miscarriage or their infertility concerns.
Of the 487 pregnancies in the “endometriosis” group, 139 had resulted in a miscarriage (or 29.1%), against only 19.4% in the control group (187 miscarriages out of 964 pregnancies), ie a difference of nearly 10%.
“We have clearly demonstrated the existence of an increased risk of early miscarriage in the first trimester of pregnancy in the event of endometriosis” summarizes Dr Pietro Santulli, principal study author.
To go further, a new research program has started at Cochin Hospital to study the impact of endometriosis on the different stages of pregnancy, including the risk of prematurity. “It is high time to learn more about this frequent disease, but which nevertheless remains still largely unknown, including the medical profession “ insist the researchers.
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