title: Characteristics of uterine contractility during menses in women with mild to moderate endometriosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To establish the role of uterine contractions in retrograde menstruation with subsequent abdominal implantation of endometrial tissue.
  
  
  METHODS
  Controlled prospective study.
  
  
  METHODS
  University hospital-based study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Infertile women with (n = 22) and without (n = 22) endometriosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Frequency, amplitude, and basal pressure tone of uterine contractions; correlation of contractions with retrograde bleeding and presence of viable endometrial cells; and dysmenorrhea before and 3 and 24 months after surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared with controls, patients with endometriosis had uterine contractions with higher frequency (22.73 +/- 5.66 osc/10 min vs. 11.09 +/- 3.26 osc/10 min), amplitude (20.83 +/- 3.94 mm Hg vs. 6.77 +/- 2.83 mm Hg), and basal pressure tone (50.14 +/- 16.30 mm Hg vs. 24.68 +/- 6.14 mm Hg). Dysmenorrhea was scored as 4.09 +/- 1.44 in patients with endometriosis and 0.86 +/- 1.42 in controls. Retrograde bleeding was found in 73% of patients with endometriosis vs. 9% of controls, and only 45% of patients with endometriosis had viable endometrial cells in the cul-de-sac.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Endometriosis may result from abnormal myometrial contractility through tubal transportation, dissemination, and implantation of endometrial viable cells into the abdomen.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Physiopathology of Reproduction, Infermi General Hospital, Rimini, Italy. bull@infotel.it
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bulletti
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: De Ziegler
authors.forename: Valeria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Polli
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Del Ferro
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Palini
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Flamigni
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004412:Dysmenorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004717:Endometrium / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008598:Menstruation / Q000502:physiology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014590:Uterine Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D014592:Uterine Hemorrhage / Q000209:etiology