Retrograde menstruation in healthy women and in patients with endometriosis

J Halme, Halme J, Jouko Halme, Mary Hammond, Hammond MG, M G Hammond, J F Hulka, Hulka JF, Raj SG, S G Raj, Talbert LM, L M Talbert
Obstetrics and gynecology · 1984 · vol. 64(2) , pp. 151–4 · PMID:6234483 · W1482806521
Observational OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 784 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by gemini-2.5-flash-lite, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

Retrograde menstruation into the peritoneal cavity via patent fallopian tubes is a common physiologic event in menstruating women, observed in 90% of those without occluded tubes, including patients with endometriosis.

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Abstract

Blood was found in the peritoneal fluid in 90% of women with patent tubes at laparoscopy during perimenstrual time. If the fallopian tubes were occluded, then only 15% of patients had evidence of blood in the pelvis. Also, 90% of patients with endometriosis and eight of nine women on oral contraceptives had bloody fluid during the menstrual period. The present observations indicate that retrograde menstruation through the fallopian tubes into the peritoneal cavity is a very common physiologic event in all menstruating women with patent tubes.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Menstruation Disturbances Ascitic Fluid Ascitic Fluid Ascitic Fluid Contraceptives, Oral Contraceptives, Oral Contraceptives, Oral Endometriosis Endometriosis Fallopian Tube Patency Tests Fallopian Tube Patency Tests Female Female Hematocrit Hematocrit Humans Humans Infertility, Female Infertility, Female

Citation neighborhood (2-hop)

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. Outer rings show 2-hop neighbours — papers reached through the immediate citers/citees. [ collapse to 1-hop ]

Cited by (50)

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License: CC0 · commercial use OK