Open AccessCase–control study to develop and validate a questionnaire for the secondary prevention of endometriosis
Author(s) -
Giuseppe Ricci,
Elena Castelpietra,
Federico Romano,
Giovanni Di Lorenzo,
Gabriella Zito,
Luca Ronfani,
Stefania Biffi,
Lorenzo Monasta
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0230828
Subject(s) - endometriosis , medicine , pelvic pain , logistic regression , infertility , physical therapy , gynecology , obstetrics , surgery , pregnancy , biology , genetics
Background Endometriosis is a debilitating gynecologic disease characterized by the implantation of endometrial tissue in ectopic locations, with signs of severe and chronic inflammation. The new knowledge on endometriosis has highlighted the value of secondary prevention through the early diagnosis and treatment of lesions to reduce serious consequences, first of all, infertility and chronic pelvic pain. The purpose of this study is to assess the reliability and validity of the questionnaire, as a tool to precociously identify women with endometriosis, to prevent the progression of symptoms. Method We reviewed the literature and selected risk factors, symptoms, and phenotypic traits of the women affected by endometriosis to create the questionnaire divided into 8 modules, with 47 questions. A total of 151 women completed the questionnaires: 51 patients who have endometriosis (the cases) and 100 matched women without endometriosis (the controls). After data collection, bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted. Results We retained four of the significant variables from a step-down logistic regression, namely chronic pelvic pain, dyspareunia with VAS≥3, painful defecation, and acne, to develop a final “predictive” logistic model achieving 90.2% sensitivity and 75% specificity. Conclusion Our pilot study demonstrated that the questionnaire provides a powerful tool for the secondary prevention of endometriosis.