Causes and mechanisms of endometriosis: an update

In: Fundamental and Clinical Medicine · 2019 · vol. 4(3) , pp. 77–82 · doi:10.23946/2500-0764-2019-4-3-77-82 · W3006395116
article OA: diamond CC0 ⤵ 5 in-corpus citations
AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-12

This review analyzes existing theories on endometriosis risk factors and triggers, suggesting a common underlying pathophysiological mechanism involving all downstream molecular pathways initiates all cases.

One-sentence paraphrase of the abstract; not a substitute for reading it. No clinical advice. How this works

AI-generated deep summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-12 · read from full text

This Russian-language update reviews theories and mechanisms proposed for endometriosis pathogenesis, drawing on historical descriptions and experimental and immunologic/biologic evidence, including menstruation-related dissemination, metaplasia concepts, benign metastasis/vascular spread models, immunosurveillance failure, and roles for inflammation, cytokine signaling, oxidative stress, and possible infection-associated sterile inflammation. The paper emphasizes key conceptual frameworks but is explicitly a narrative/overview rather than a single original study, so its conclusions depend on the underlying literature cited and are not limited to one study design. It also discusses related entities and mechanistic heterogeneity highlighted by prior work on different anatomic lesion types and immune cell involvement. This paper is centrally about endometriosis — it is an update of causes and mechanisms of endometriosis pathogenesis, including immune, inflammatory, and dissemination theories that inform understanding relevant to endometriosis and thus also overlaps with broader discussions of adenomyosis-related pelvic disease.

Read from the paper's body, not the abstract. Not a substitute for reading the paper. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

Despite extensive investigations, the causes of endometriosis and mechanisms of its development are largely unknown. Here we review the existing theories, analyzing the risk factors and triggers of endometriosis. We suggest that all cases of endometriosis are initiated through a common pathophysiological mechanism which involves all downstream molecular pathways.
Full text 9,999 characters · extracted from oa-doi-fallback · click to expand
Новое о теориях патогенеза эндометриоза https://doi.org/10.23946/2500-0764-2019-4-3-77-82 Аннотация Об авторах М. Эл-ДжефутРоссия доктор медицины, доцент кафедры акушерства и гинекологии, Колледж медицины и медицинских наук, Аль-Айн, ОАЭ; врач акушер-гинеколог отделения акушерства и гинекологии, Аль-Айн, Объединенные Арабские Эмираты; доцент кафедры акушерства и гинекологии медицинского факультета, Иордания, доцент кафедры акушерства и гинекологии №1, Москва Н. В. Артымук Россия доктор медицинских наук, профессор, заведующая кафедрой акушерства и гинекологии имени профессора Г. А. Ушаковой, 650056, г. Кемерово, ул. Ворошилова, 22а Список литературы 1. Эл-Джефут М., Артымук Н.В. Соответствует ли скрытый (бессимптомный или микроскопический) эндометриоз определению болезни? Fundamental’naya i klinisheskaya meditsina. 2016;1(2):83-87. (In Russ.). 2. Endometriosis: pathogenesis and treatment. Harada T, eds. Springer, Japan; 2014. DOI: 10.1007/978-4-431-54421-0 3. Knapp VJ. How old is endometriosis? Late 17th- and 18thcentury European descriptions of the disease. Fertil Steril. 1999;72(1):10-14. DOI: 10.1016/s0015-0282(99)00196-x 4. Sampson JA. Metastatic or embolic endometriosis due to menstrual dissemination of endometrial tissue into the venous circulation. Am J Pathol. 1927;3(2): 93-110. 5. Sampson JA. Peritoneal endometriosis due to the menstrual dissemination of endometrial tissue into the peritoneal cavity. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1927;14(2):422-469. 6. Rokitansky C. Über Uterusdrüsen-Neubildung in Uterus-und Ovarial-Sarcomen. (On the neoplasm of uterus glands on uterine and ovarian sarcomas). Z Ges Aerzte Wien. 1860;16:577-581. 7. Intellectual Development of Carl Von Rokitansky. A History of Endometriosis. Springer, London; 2011. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-585-9_2 8. Cullen TS. Adenomyoma of the uterus. Philadelphia, WB: Saunders; 1908. 9. Cullen TS. Adenomyoma of the rectovaginal septum. JAMA. 1914;62(11): 835-839. 9. Ja S. Perforating hemorrhagic (chocolate) cysts of the ovary; Their importance and specially their relation to pelvic adenomas of the endometrorial type. Arch Surg. 1921;3: 245- 323. 10. Benagiano G, Brosens I. Who identified endometriosis? Fertil Steril. 2011;95(1):13-16. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2010.06.027 11. Benagiano G, Brosens I. The history of endometriosis: Identifying the disease. Hum Reprod. 1991;6(7):963-968. DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.humrep.a137470 12. Halme J, Hammond MG, Hulka JF, Raj SG, Talbert LM. Retrograde menstruation in healthy women and in patients with endometriosis. Obstet Gynecol. 1984;64(2):151-154. 13. Liu DT, Hitchcock A. Endometriosis: Its association with retrograde menstruation, dysmenorrhoea and tubal pathology. Br J Obstet Gynaecol. 1986;93(8): 859-862. DOI:10.1111/j.1471-0528.1986.tb07995.x 14. Koks CA, Dunselman GA, de Goeij AF, Arends JW, Evers JL. Evaluation of a menstrual cup to collect shed endometrium for in vitro studies. Fertil Steril. 1997;68(3): 560-564. DOI:10.1016/s0015-0282(97)00250-1 15. Seli E, Berkkanoglu M., Arici A. Pathogenesis of endometriosis. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2003;30(1):41-61. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-8545(02)00052-9 16. Jenkins S, Olive DL, Haney AF. Endometriosis: Pathogenetic implications of the anatomic distribution. Obstet Gynecol. 1986;67(3):335-338. 17. Te Linde RW, Scott RB. Experimental endometriosis. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1950;60(5):1147-1173. DOI:10.1016/0002-9378(50)90517-5 18. D'Hooghe TM, Bambra CS, Suleman MA, Dunselman GA, Evers HL, Koninckx PR. Development of a model of retrograde menstruation in baboons (Papio anubis). Fertil Steril. 1994;62(3):635-638. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0015-0282(16)56957-X 19. Missmer SA, Cramer DW. The epidemiology of endometriosis. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2003;30(1):1-19. DOI: https: //doi.org/ 10.1016/S0889-8545(02)00050-5 20. Burney RO, Giudice LC. Pathogenesis and pathophysiology of endometriosis. Fertil steril. 2012;98(3):511-519. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2012.06.029 21. Benagiano G, Guo SW, Puttemans P, Gordts S, Brosens I. Progress in the diagnosis and management of adolescent endometriosis: an opinion. Reprod biomed online. 2018;36(1):102-114. DOI: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2017.09.015 22. Matsuura K, Ohtake H, Katabuchi H, Okamura H. Coelomic metaplasia theory of endometriosis evidence from in vivo studies and an in vitro experimental model. Gynecol Obstet Invest. 1999;47 Suppl 1:18-22. 23. Iwanoff NS. Drusiges cystenhaltiges utuerusfibrom compliciert durch sarcom und carcinom. Monatsschrift fur Geburtshilfe und Gynakologie. 1898;7:295-300. 24. Meyer, R. Zur Frage der heterotopen Epithelwucherung, insbesondere des Peritonealepithels und in den Ovarien. Virchows Archiv für Pathologische Anatomie und Physiologie und für Klinische Medizin. 1924;250(3):595-610. 25. Levander G, Normann P. The pathogenesis of endometriosis. An experimental study. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 1955;34(4):366-398. 26. Von Recklinghausen F. Adenomyomas and cystadenomas of the wall of the uterus and tube: Their origin as remnants of the wolffian body. Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift. 1896;8:530. 27. Russell WW. Aberrant portions of the Mullerian duct found in an ovary. Johns Hopkins Hospital Bulletin. 1899;10:8-10. 28. Halban J. Metastatic hysteroadenosis. Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift. 1924;37:1205-1206. 29. Batson OV. The function of the vertebral veins and their role in the spread of metastases. Ann Surg. 1940;112(1):138. 30. Javert CT. Observations on the pathology and spread of endometriosis based on the theory of benign metastasis. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1951;62(3):477-487. 31. Jubanyik KJ, Comite F. Extrapelvic endometriosis. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 1997;24(2):411-440. 32. Mechsner S, Weichbrodt M, Riedlinger WF, Kaufmann AM, Schneider A, Köhler C. Immunohistochemical evaluation of endometriotic lesions and disseminated endometriosis-like cells in incidental lymph nodes of patients with endometriosis. Fert Steril. 2010;94(2):457-463. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2009.03.097 33. Nisolle M, Donnez J. Peritoneal endometriosis, ovarian endometriosis, and adenomyotic nodules of the rectovaginal septum are three different entities. Fertil Steril. 1997;68(4):585- 596. DOI:10.1016/s0015-0282(97)00191-x 34. Sinaii N, Cleary SD, Ballweg ML, Nieman LK, Stratton P. High rates of autoimmune and endocrine disorders, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome and atopic diseases among women with endometriosis: a survey analysis. Hum Reprod. 2002;17(10):2715-2724. DOI:10.1093/humrep/17.10.2715 35. Berbic M, Schulke L, Markham R, Tokushige N, Russell P, Fraser IS. Macrophage expression in endometrium of women with and without endometriosis. Hum Reprod. 2008;24(2):325- 332. DOI: 10.1093/humrep/den393 36. Schulke L, Berbic M, Manconi F, Tokushige N, Markham R, Fraser IS. Dendritic cell populations in the eutopic and ectopic endometrium of women with endometriosis. Hum Reprod. 2009;24(7):1695-1703. DOI: 10.1093/humrep/dep071 37. Sikora J, Mielczarek-Palacz A, Kondera-Anasz Z. Role of natural killer cell activity in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. Curr Med Chem. 2011;18(2):200-208. 38. Kyama CM, Mihalyi A, Simsa P, Falconer H, Fulop V, Mwenda JM, Peeraer K, Tomassetti C, Meuleman C, D'Hooghe TM. Role of cytokines in the endometrial-peritoneal cross-talk and development of endometriosis. Front Biosci (Elite Ed). 2009;1:444-454. 39. Christodoulakos G, Augoulea A, Lambrinoudaki I, Sioulas V, Creatsas G. Pathogenesis of endometriosis: the role of defective ‘immunosurveillance’. Eur J Contracept Reprod Health Care. 2007;12(3):194-202. 40. Koninckx P, Barlow D, Kennedy S. Implantation versus infiltration: the Sampson versus the endometriotic disease theory. Gynecol Obstet Invest. 1999;47(Suppl 1):3-10. DOI: 10.1159/000052853 41. Koninckx PR. Is mild endometriosis a disease? Is mild endometriosis a condition occurring intermittently in all women? Hum Reprod. 1994;9(12):2202-2205. DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.humrep.a138419 42. Koninckx PR, Donnez J, Brosens I. Microscopic endometriosis: impact on our understanding of the disease and its surgery. Fertil Steril. 2016;105(2):305-306. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2015.10.038 43. Donnez J, Binda MM, Donnez O, Dolmans MM. Oxidative stress in the pelvic cavity and its role in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. Fertil Steril. 2016;106(5): 1011-1017. DOI: 10 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2016.07.1075 44. Kobayashi H, Higashiura Y, Shigetomi H, Kajihara H. Pathogenesis of endometriosis: the role of initial infection and subsequent sterile inflammation. Mol Med Rep. 2014;9(1):9- 15. DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2013.1755 45. Lin WC, Chang CY, Hsu YA, Chiang JH, Wan L. Increased risk of endometriosis in patients with lower genital tract infection: a nationwide cohort study. Medicine (Baltimore). 2016;95(10):e2773. DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000002773 46. Heidarpour M, Derakhshan M. Prevalence of high‐risk human papillomavirus infection in women with ovarian endometriosis. J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2017;43(1):135-139. DOI: 10.1111/jog.13188 47. Krakauer DC, Plotkin JB. Redundancy, antiredundancy, and the robustness of genomes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2002;99(3):1405-1409. 48. Захаров И.С., Петрич Л.Н., Васютинская Ю.В., Демьянова Т.Н., Фетищева Л.Е. Клинический случай эндометриоза у женщины в постменопаузальном периоде. Фундаментальная и клиническая медицина. 2017;2(3):88-92. DOI 10.23946/2500-0764-2017-2-3-88-92 49. Ladanyi C, Boyd S, Sticco P, Mohling S. Postmenopausal endometriosis, where are we now? Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. 2019;31(4):267-278. DOI: 10.1097/GCO.0000000000000548 Рецензия Для цитирования: Эл-Джефут М., Артымук Н.В. Новое о теориях патогенеза эндометриоза. Фундаментальная и клиническая медицина. 2019;4(3):77-82. https://doi.org/10.23946/2500-0764-2019-4-3-77-82 For citation: Al-Jefout M., Artymuk N.V. Causes and mechanisms of endometriosis: an update. Fundamental and Clinical Medicine. 2019;4(3):77-82. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.23946/2500-0764-2019-4-3-77-82 JATS XML

Text is read by the "Ask this paper" AI Q&A widget below. Extraction quality varies by source — PMC NXML preserves structure cleanly, OA-HTML may include some navigation residue, and OA-PDF can have broken hyphenation. The publisher copy (via DOI) is the canonical version.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Ask this paper AI returns verbatim quotes from the full text · source: oa-doi-fallback

Answers must be backed by verbatim quotes from this paper's full text. Hallucinated quotes are dropped automatically; if no verbatim passage answers the question, we say so. How this works

Condition tags

endometriosis

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

References (49)

Cited by (5)

Source provenance

openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK