ENDOMETRIOSIS, PELVIC PAIN, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING

Objective: To investigate whether there are psychological differences between women with symptomatic as opposed to asymptomatic mild endomet riosis. Design: Forty-nine women with minimal or mild endometriosis co mpleted the Beck Depression Inventory, the Speilberger State-Trait ana lysis, and the Golombok Rust Inventory of Sexual Satisfaction. Women a dmitted for sterilization acted as normal controls and women complaini ng of pelvic pain with no organic pathology were studied also. Setting : Tertiary referral centers for endometriosis. Main Outcome Measures: Women with pelvic pain symptoms, whether they had mild endometriosis o r a normal pelvis, had similar scores for the Beck Depression Inventor y. These scores were significantly higher than those of women with asy mptomatic disease and normal women admitted for sterilization. Conclus ions: Women with mild endometriosis should not be included as a contro l group when studies on pelvic pain are planned.