Increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis in patients with endometriosis: genetic aspects

Maria I Zervou, Dimitrios Vlachakis, Dimitriοs Vlachakis, Louis Papageorgiou, Elias Eliopoulos, George N Goulielmos
Rheumatology (Oxford, England) · 2022 · vol. 61(11) , pp. 4252–4262 · doi:10.1093/rheumatology/keac143 · PMID:35258592 · W4221094462
review OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 9 in-corpus citations
View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-06 ⓘ

This review outlines known shared genetic factors associated with the development of endometriosis and rheumatoid arthritis, both of which are more common in women and involve complex immune system abnormalities.

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

Abstract

RA is an inflammatory joint disease of an autoimmune nature, with a complex mode of inheritance characterized by chronic and destructive inflammation in the peripheral joints of the hands and feet and irreversible disability. This disorder occurs more often in women, and reproductive and hormonal factors have been shown to be related to increased risk. Endometriosis is a chronic, complex, oestrogen-dependent and progressive gynaecological disorder characterized by the growth of endometrial tissue outside the uterine cavity. Thus far, substantial abnormalities in the immune system of women with endometriosis have been demonstrated. Epidemiological data have suggested a link between endometriosis and the risk of incident RA. The similarities between molecular and cellular pathways of endometriosis and RA may implicate a partially shared genetic background. In this review we present an overview of the shared genetic factors known thus far that are associated with the development of both disorders.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatoid Endometriosis Estrogens Female Humans Immune System Inflammation

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 (100)

Cited by (9)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-12T06:13:51.797165+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-05-13T22:23:57.700195+00:00
unpaywall
last seen: 2026-06-02T02:00:03.124865+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK