ENDOMETRIOSIS AND BODY-FAT DISTRIBUTION

Objective: To examine the association of body fat distribution with ri sk of endometriosis in an effort to determine whether a specific somat otype is related to the disease. Methods: We conducted a case-control study of 88 laparoscopically confirmed cases of endometriosis, identif ied in a specialty gynecologic practice in western New York, and 88 ag e-matched friend controls. Data were collected by standardized persona l interview, and body measurements were taken in a standardized fashio n by one interviewer. Risk of endometriosis associated with body fat d istribution, as expressed by waist-to-hip and waist-to-thigh ratios, w as assessed using logistic regression. Results: For women under 30 yea rs of age (45 cases, 46 controls), endometriosis was inversely related to both waist-to-hip ratio (odds ratio 6.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.01-19.01) and waist-to-thigh ratio (odds ratio 3.64, 95% CI 1.2 3-10.78). This effect was not evident among women aged 30 years and ol der (43 cases, 42 controls). Conclusion: Our results suggest a specifi c somatotype with a predominance of peripheral body fat among women wi th endometriosis. This finding may provide information useful in both the diagnosis and understanding of the disease etiology.