Endometriosis

According to the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey questionnaire developers, a global measure of health-related quality of life such as the "SF-36 Total/Global/Overall Score" cannot be generated from the questionnaire. However, studies keep on reporting such measure. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency and to describe some characteristics of articles reporting the SF-36 Total/Global/Overall Score in the scientific literature. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses method was adapted to a scoping review. We performed searches in PubMed, Web of Science, SCOPUS, BVS, and Cochrane Library databases for articles using such scores. We found 172 articles published between 1997 and 2015; 110 (64.0%) of them were published from 2010 onwards; 30.0% appeared in journals with Impact Factor 3.00 or greater. Overall, 129 (75.0%) out of the 172 studies did not specify the method for calculating the "SF-36 Total Score"; 13 studies did not specify their methods but referred to the SF-36 developers' studies or others; and 30 articles used different strategies for calculating such score, the most frequent being arithmetic averaging of the eight SF-36 domains scores. We concluded that the "SF-36 Total/Global/Overall Score" has been increasingly reported in the scientific literature. Researchers should be aware of this procedure and of its possible impacts upon human health.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2050312116671725

SF-36 total score as a single measure of health-related quality of life: Scoping review:

The IDEA (International Deep Endometriosis Analysis group) statement is a consensus opinion on terms, definitions and measurements that may be used to describe the sonographic features of the different phenotypes of endometriosis. Currently, it is difficult to compare results between published studies because authors use different terms when describing the same structures and anatomical locations. We hope that the terms and definitions suggested herein will be adopted in centers around the world. This would result in consistent use of nomenclature when describing the ultrasound location and extent of endometriosis. We believe that the standardization of terminology will allow meaningful comparisons between future studies in women with an ultrasound diagnosis of endometriosis and should facilitate multicenter research. Copyright © 2016 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/uog.15955

Systematic approach to sonographic evaluation of the pelvis in women with suspected endometriosis, including terms, definitions and measurements: a consensus opinion from the International Deep Endometriosis Analysis (IDEA) group

The MUSA (Morphological Uterus Sonographic Assessment) statement is a consensus statement on terms, definitions and measurements that may be used to describe and report the sonographic features of the myometrium using gray-scale sonography, color/power Doppler and three-dimensional ultrasound imaging. The terms and definitions described may form the basis for prospective studies to predict the risk of different myometrial pathologies, based on their ultrasound appearance, and thus should be relevant for the clinician in daily practice and for clinical research. The sonographic features and use of terminology for describing the two most common myometrial lesions (fibroids and adenomyosis) and uterine smooth muscle tumors are presented. Copyright © 2015 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/uog.14806

Terms, definitions and measurements to describe sonographic features of myometrium and uterine masses: a consensus opinion from the Morphological Uterus Sonographic Assessment (MUSA) group

Pathogenesis of endometriosis: the genetic/epigenetic theory

Prevalence of adenomyosis in women undergoing surgery for endometriosis.

Do women with endometriosis have to worry about sex

Urodynamic evaluation and anorectal manometry pre- and post-operative bowel shaving surgical procedure for posterior deep infiltrating endometriosis: a pilot study

Adenomyosis as the presence of ectopic endometrial glands and stroma within the myometrium is an elusive condition that is challenging to diagnose due to the similarity between its clinical symptoms and ultrasound characteristics and those of other frequent benign conditions such as leiomyomatosis1. Over recent years, transvaginal sonography (TVS) has been recommended as an appropriate tool for visualization of adenomyosis, with a sensitivity of 65–81% and a specificity of 65–100%2. We performed a prospective study between January 2012 and January 2014 including 50 symptomatic fertile women who were scheduled to undergo elective hysterectomy because of symptoms of endometriosis/adenomyosis. Adenomyosis was diagnosed on TVS, in accordance with previous studies3,4, in the presence of one or more of the following criteria: heterogeneous myometrium, irregular cystic areas, hypoechoic linear striations, asymmetry of uterine walls and poor definition of the endometrial–myometrial junctional zone (JZ). Moreover, a novel sign, which we called ‘question mark Figure 1 Transvaginal ultrasound image and representative diagram showing the question mark form of the uterus as a marker for adenomyosis.

https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/uog.14750

Question mark form of uterus: a simple sonographic sign associated with the presence of adenomyosis

Background Endometriosis is a chronic and progressive condition of women of reproductive age. It is strongly associated with significant impairment of sexual function. Aim To objectively evaluate the impact of laparoscopic excision of endometriosis on sexual function in patients with deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE) compared to healthy women. Setting and design Prospective study, including 250 patients with a diagnosis of DIE scheduled for laparoscopic surgery and 250 healthy women. Methods A sexual activity questionnaire, SHOW-Q (Sexual Health Outcomes in Women Questionnaire), was used to collect data pertaining to women9s satisfaction, orgasm, desire and pelvic problem interference with sexual function. Women with DIE underwent complete excision of endometriotic lesions. All participants were asked to complete the SHOW-Q questionnaire before and after surgery. Results SHOW-Q scores in the endometriosis group before and 6 months after surgery were compared with the healthy group scores. A significant improvement was found between pre- and post-treatment in the scores of the satisfaction scale, desire scale and pelvic problem interference scale of SHOW-Q. The distribution of post-surgery SHOW-Q scores was comparable to healthy women9s scores apart from the orgasm scale score, which was unchanged in the post-surgery group. Conclusions The surgical approach to treatment has a positive impact not only on organ impairment but also on sexual function in women affected by DIE.

https://srh.bmj.com/content/familyplanning/41/4/278.full.pdf

Valentina Bertoldo

Papers

Prevalence of adenomyosis in women undergoing surgery for endometriosis.

Do women with endometriosis have to worry about sex

Urodynamic evaluation and anorectal manometry pre- and post-operative bowel shaving surgical procedure for posterior deep infiltrating endometriosis: a pilot study

Question mark form of uterus: a simple sonographic sign associated with the presence of adenomyosis

Sexual function in women undergoing surgery for deep infiltrating endometriosis: a comparison with healthy women.