Endometriosis and Body Fat Distribution

Susan E. McCann, Jo L. Freudenheim, Sherri L. Darrow, Ronald E. Batt, MARIA A. ZIELEZNY
In: Obstetrics & Gynecology · 1993 · vol. 82(4, Part 1) , pp. 545–549 · doi:10.1097/00006250-199310010-00014 · W4235356580
article OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 11 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-09 ⓘ

This case-control study found that lower waist-to-hip and waist-to-thigh ratios, indicating more peripheral body fat, were associated with increased endometriosis risk in women under 30.

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Abstract

Objective: To examine the association of body fat distribution with risk of endometriosis in an effort to determine whether a specific somatotype is related to the disease. Methods: We conducted a case-control study of 88 laparoscopically confirmed cases of endometriosis, identified in a specialty gynecologic practice in western New York, and 88 age-matched friend controls. Data were collected by standardized personal interview, and body measurements were taken in a standardized fashion by one interviewer. Risk of endometriosis associated with body fat distribution, as expressed by waist-to-hip and waist-to-thigh ratios, was assessed using logistic regression. Results: For women under 30 years of age (45 cases, 46 controls), endometriosis was inversely related to both waist-to-hip ratio (odds ratio 6.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.01-19.01) and waist-to-thigh ratio (odds ratio 3.64, 95% CI 1.23-10.78). This effect was not evident among women aged 30 years and older (43 cases, 42 controls). Conclusion: Our results suggest a specific somatotype with a predominance of peripheral body fat among women with endometriosis. This finding may provide information useful in both the diagnosis and understanding of the disease etiology.(Obstet Gynecol 1993;82:545-9)

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endometriosis

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