Global Drug Discovery, Bayer Pharma AG, Müllerstraße 178, 13353 Berlin, Germany.
Leuven University Fertility Center, University Hospitals, UZ Gasthuisberg, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2015 May;36(5):270-6. doi: 10.1016/j.tips.2015.03.004. Epub 2015 Apr 19.
Endometriosis is a chronic, hormone-dependent, inflammatory disease, characterized by the presence and growth of endometrial tissue outside the uterine cavity. It affects 5-10% of the female population of reproductive age and is frequently associated with moderate to severe pain, subfertility, and a marked reduction in health-related quality of life. Here, we propose a new pathophysiological concept of endometriosis, summarizing recent findings in one unifying picture. We propose menstruating tissue as the trigger for inflammatory pain in endometriosis through the activation of innate immune cells and peripheral nerve endings. We speculate how innovative treatment modalities beyond hormonal treatment will improve patients' lives.
子宫内膜异位症是一种慢性、激素依赖性、炎症性疾病，其特征是子宫内膜组织在子宫腔外存在和生长。它影响着 5-10%的育龄期女性，常伴有中重度疼痛、不孕以及显著降低的生活质量。在这里，我们提出了子宫内膜异位症的一个新的病理生理学概念，用一个统一的画面总结了最近的发现。我们提出，通过激活固有免疫细胞和外周神经末梢，月经组织是引发子宫内膜异位症炎症性疼痛的触发因素。我们推测，除了激素治疗之外，创新性的治疗方式将如何改善患者的生活。
