Estimation de la prévalence et des facteurs de risque des douleurs d’expression neuropathique chez les femmes atteintes d’endométriose à La Réunion : étude observationnelle transversale

Introduction: Recent studies have shown that neuropathic-like pain is common in patients with endometriosis.Methods: Our primary objective was to estimate the prevalence of neuropathic-like pain in patients with endometriosis in Réunion. Our secondary objectives were to identify the factors associated with this kind of pain and to estimate the prevalence of untreated neuropathic-like pain and untreated pain of all types. We also studied the correlation between PainDETECT and DN4. This epidemiological study is a quantitative cross-sectional descriptive survey conducted between October 2024 and October 2025 on 157 patients. The presence of neuropathic-like pain was established by a positive PainDETECT score (≥ 19/38) for perineal, abdominal or lower limb pain. We didn’t investigate the underlying mechanism (nociceptive, neuropathic or central sensitization) of these pains, we will therefore talk about “neuropathic-like” pain rather than “neuropathic” pain.The association with the following variables was studied: Age (≤ 35 vs > 35 years), BMI ( 150 minutes/week), Family history of endometriosis (yes vs no), Tobacco use (yes vs no), Alcohol consumption (yes vs no).Results: The prevalence of neuropathic-like pain was 33.1% in our population. The prevalence of untreated neuropathic-like pain was 17.2%. The prevalence of pains (of all types) not treated appropriately was 17.8%. Alcohol consumption was associated with a lower likelihood of neuropathic-like pain (OR = 0.20; 95% CI: 0.07–0.47; p < 0.001). The continuous PainDETECT and DN4 scores were strongly correlated (Spearman's ρ = 0.70; p < 0.001). However, when dichotomising the scores (PainDETECT ≥ 19; DN4 ≥ 3), Cohen's kappa was 0.39 (95% CI [0.27–0.51]), indicating moderate agreement.Conclusion: Our study suggests that one-third of women with endometriosis in Reunion Island have neuropathic-like pain.