STERILITY AND ENDOMETRIOSIS

STERILITY is a common symptom of endometriosis. Various authors 1 have stated, as shown in table 1, that 20 to 66 per cent of patients with endometriosis have a history of sterility. Pregnancy can occur in presence of endometriosis, but incidence is low. Why are majority of women who have endometriosis sterile? Witherspoon 2 stated that the high frequency of sterility is due to presence of multiple follicular cysts of ovaries in absence of ovulation and subsequent formation of corpora lutea. This theory parallels that proposed as to etiology of sterility in polycystic ovaries. This theory is not tenable for all cases, as premenstrual phase changes characteristic of corpus luteum effect of endometrial transplants and corpora lutea have been demonstrated at operation, or in removed ovaries. With or without formation of a corpus luteum all cases of endometriosis