Pharmacological management of endometriosis

Endometriosis is a disease that has a prevalence of about 10% in the female population. It is characterized by chronic pelvic pain, dyspareunia and infertility. It is caused by the presence of endometrial tissue, stroma and glands, found outside the uterine cavity, most commonly found on the pelvic peritoneum, ovaries and rectovaginal septum. This thesis looks into the current available treatment modalities for the disease. Treatments can vary between medication and surgery or a combination of both. The true pathomechanism behind the disease has yet to be completely discovered but it is thought to be an estrogen driven inflammatory disease. Therefor many of the treatments attempt to keep the disease under control by affecting the bodies internal hormonal milieu, this can range from oral contraceptive pills to hysterectomy with bilateral salpingoophorectomy. Most of the treatments available today have a similar success profile although the side effects vary considerable between various therapies. New drugs are currently going through different stages of FDA approval and with ongoing research into the pathogenesis of the disease more are likely to surface as the enigma surrounding endometriosis starts to clear up.