Inflammation to Infertility: Panoramic View on Endometriosis

Abstract

Endometriosis is a disease caused by the implantation of endometrial glands and stroma outside the uterine cavity. It affects 10% of the reproductive-age women this means that 190 million women are affected worldwide. The definitive diagnosis requires surgical exploration or a laparoscopy which is of a high expense. The pathogenesis of the disease is heterogeneous and poorly understood despite the progress in the research field. Infertility is one of the main symptoms of Endometriosis. The mechanism behind this remains unclear. Literature suggests that Endometriosis reduces implantation capacity, increases the risk of pregnancy loss, and causes anatomical obstruction imposed by endometriotic lesions. The disease has a high burden to it by decreasing the quality of women's life and imposing negative consequences for their productivity, social life, and emotional wellbeing. Since inflammation is considered the hallmark of endometriosis, it is worth looking at the mechanism of how inflammation is linked to infertility in endometriosis patients. In this study, we summarized the recent finding of how inflammation can affect oocyte, endometrium, hormones, and sperm.