Immunohistochemical expression of Drosha is reduced in eutopic and ectopic endometrium of women with adenomyosis

The objective of this study was to evaluate the immunohistochemical expression of Dicer, Drosha, and Exportin-5 in the eutopic and ectopic endometrium of women with adenomyosis. Twenty-two paired ectopic and eutopic endometrium from women with adenomyosis and 10 eutopic endometrium samples from control women undergoing hysterectomy were included in the study. Paraffin-embedded tissue blocks were cut and stained for immunohistochemistry. The percentage of epithelial cells positively marked was identified digitally after an automated slide scanning process. Mann-Whitney test or Wilcoxon signed-rank test was performed for independent and paired groups, respectively. A lower expression of Drosha was observed in the eutopic endometrium of women with adenomyosis than in the eutopic endometrium of women without the disease (69.9±3.4% vs 85.2±2.9%, respectively) (P=0.016; 95%CI: 3.4 to 27.4%). We also detected lower Drosha expression in the ectopic endometrium of women with adenomyosis than in the eutopic endometrium of the same women (59.6±3.2% vs 69.9±3.4%, respectively) (P=0.004; 95%CI: 2.3 to 16.7%). Additionally, we observed a correlation between Drosha expression in the ectopic and paired eutopic endometrium (P=0.034, rho=0.454). No significant difference in Dicer or Exportin expression was observed. Predominant pattern of cytoplasmic staining for the anti-Drosha antibody and both a nuclear and cytoplasmic pattern for the anti-Exportin antibody were observed. Drosha expression was significantly lower in the endometrium of women with adenomyosis compared to the eutopic endometrium of asymptomatic women without the disease. Furthermore, its expression was lower in the ectopic endometrium but correlated to the paired eutopic endometrium.

Reduction of blood nitric oxide levels is associated with clinical improvement of the chronic pelvic pain related to endometriosis

The objective of this prospective study was to determine the plasma levels of nitric oxide (NO) in women with chronic pelvic pain secondary to endometriosis (n=24) and abdominal myofascial pain syndrome (n=16). NO levels were measured in plasma collected before and 1 month after treatment. Pretreatment NO levels (μM) were lower in healthy volunteers (47.0±12.7) than in women with myofascial pain (64.2±5.0, P=0.01) or endometriosis (99.5±12.9, P<0.0001). After treatment, plasma NO levels were reduced only in the endometriosis group (99.5±12.9 vs 61.6±5.9, P=0.002). A correlation between reduction of pain intensity and reduction of NO level was observed in the endometriosis group [correlation = 0.67 (95%CI = 0.35 to 0.85), P<0.0001]. Reduction of NO levels was associated with an increase of pain threshold in this group [correlation = -0.53 (-0.78 to -0.14), P<0.0001]. NO levels appeared elevated in women with chronic pelvic pain diagnosed as secondary to endometriosis, and were directly associated with reduction in pain intensity and increase in pain threshold after treatment. Further studies are needed to investigate the role of NO in the pathophysiology of pain in women with endometriosis and its eventual association with central sensitization.

Pain pressure threshold algometry of the abdominal wall in healthy women

The objective of this study was to determine the inter- and intra-examiner reliability of pain pressure threshold algometry at various points of the abdominal wall of healthy women. Twenty-one healthy women in menacme with a mean age of 28 ± 5.4 years (range: 19-39 years) were included. All volunteers had regular menstrual cycles (27-33 days) and were right-handed and, to the best of our knowledge, none were taking medications at the time of testing. Women with a diagnosis of depression, anxiety or other mood disturbances were excluded. Women with previous abdominal surgery, any pain condition or any evidence of inflammation, hypertension, smoking, alcoholism, or inflammatory disease were also excluded. Pain perception thresholds were assessed with a pressure algometer with digital traction and compression and a measuring capacity for 5 kg. All points were localized by palpation and marked with a felt-tipped pen and each individual was evaluated over a period of 2 days in two consecutive sessions, each session consisting of a set of 14 point measurements repeated twice by two examiners in random sequence. There was no statistically significant difference in the mean pain threshold obtained by the two examiners on 2 diferent days (examiner A: P = 1.00; examiner B: P = 0.75; Wilcoxon matched pairs test). There was excellent/good agreement between examiners for all days and all points. Our results have established baseline values to which future researchers will be able to refer. They show that pressure algometry is a reliable measure for pain perception in the abdominal wall of healthy women.