In utero exposure and endometriosis

Giuseppe Benagiano, Ivo Brosens
The journal of maternal-fetal & neonatal medicine : the official journal of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Federation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Societies, the International Society of Perinatal Obstetricians · 2013 · vol. 27(3) , pp. 303–308 · doi:10.3109/14767058.2013.814630 · PMID:23819685 · W2058740891
review OA: green CC0 ⤵ 20 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-07 ⓘ

This review examines evidence linking *in utero* exposure to agents like dioxins and diethylstilbestrol with an increased risk of endometriosis in humans, while noting that recent investigations have not found specific correlations.

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Abstract

Adverse living and nutritional conditions in utero and in early infancy may influence the risk of diseases in adult life, because fetal growth seems determined by interactions between the environment and the fetal genome and these interactions may determine the risk of postnatal disease and the capacity to react to and cope with the postnatal environment. It has been proven that massive fetal exposure to toxic agents causes an increased incidence of negative outcomes in pregnant women; of particular interest is the association between in utero exposure to toxic agents and the occurrence of endometriosis. There is evidence that exposure to dioxins can facilitate short-term survival of endometrial implants in non-human primates, but there is no solid evidence that it may lead to endometriosis in humans. In the case of diethylstilbestrol, an increased risk of developing endometriosis seems well established, although the mechanisms through which diethylstilbestrol can modify endometrial physiology remain uncertain. Finally, evidence that environmental and specific dietary factors may play a role in increasing the incidence of endometriosis and other pathologic conditions has accumulated over the years. Although the hypothesis may be valid, the most recent investigations have failed to find specific, significant correlations.

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Condition tags

mesh:D004715endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects Benzhydryl Compounds Benzhydryl Compounds Bisphenol A Compounds Diethylstilbestrol Diethylstilbestrol Dioxins Dioxins Endometriosis Environmental Pollutants Environmental Pollutants Estrogens, Non-Steroidal Estrogens, Non-Steroidal Female Humans Phenols Phenols Pregnancy Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects

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 (59)

Cited by (20)

Source provenance

europepmc
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