Majority of Women with Endometriosis Do Not Experience Infertility

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:

Stacey A. Missmer, ScD Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology Director of Epidemiologic Research, Division of Reproductive Medicine Scientific Director, Boston Center for Endometriosis Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School Associate Professor in Epidemiology Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Dr. Stacey Missmer

Stacey A. Missmer, ScD
Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology
Director of Epidemiologic Research, Division of Reproductive Medicine
Scientific Director, Boston Center for Endometriosis
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Associate Professor in Epidemiology
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?

Dr. Missmer: As we’ve known for many years, women with endometriosis are at greater risk for infertility compared to women without endometriosis.

What this new study confirms, however, is that endometriosis and infertility should not be conflated.

MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?

Dr. Missmer:The majority of women with endometriosis do not experience infertility and the majority do become pregnant and are able to build the families that they desire.

MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?

Dr. Missmer: The majority of women with endometriosis do not experience infertility and the majority do become pregnant and are able to build the families that they desire.

MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Dr. Missmer: The key next step in endometriosis discovery is identifying that minority of women with endometriosis who ARE at higher risk of infertility. We can then target treatments directly to the biology causing infertility in women with endometriosis. We can also attempt to identify the women at risk early so that they can access fertility treatment and perhaps fertility preservation early.

MedicalResearch.com: Thank you for your contribution to the MedicalResearch.com community.

Citation:

J. Prescott, L.V. Farland, D.K. Tobias, A.J. Gaskins, D. Spiegelman, J.E. Chavarro, J.W. Rich-Edwards, R.L. Barbieri, and S.A. Missmer
A prospective cohort study of endometriosis and subsequent risk of infertilityHum. Reprod. first published online May 1, 2016 doi:10.1093/humrep/dew085

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Last Updated on May 27, 2016 by Marie Benz MD FAAD

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