The Changes of Serum Estradiol and TNF-Alpha Levels in Endometriosis Patients with Pelvic Pain

Objective To investigate the changes of serum estradiol(E2) and tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-α in endometriosis(EMS) patients with pelvic pain,and their correlation thereof. Methods The serum levels of E2 and TNF-α were measured with ELISA in 113 EMS patients with pelvic pain( 37 cases in mild pain group,41 cases in moderate pain group and 35 cases in severe pain group) and 30 healthy women without EMS(control group). Results There were no significant differences in the serum levels of E2 and TNF-α between mild pain group and normal control group. There were significantly higher levels of E2 and TNF-α in moderate and severe pain groups than those of mild pain group and normal control group. The serum levels of E2 and TNF-α were significantly higher in severe pain group compared with those of moderate pain group(P 0.05). There was no correlation between serum levels of E2 and TNF-α in mild pain group. The serum levels of E2 and TNF-α were positively correlated between moderate pain group and severe pain group(P 0.05). Conclusion The increased E2 level can play a role in chronic pelvic pain of EMS by inducing macrophage to release TNF-α.