Last week, a conference was held at the Archet Hospital to raise awareness about endometriosis.
“Understanding Endometriosis and Improving Quality of Life.” This was the name of the conference led by several doctors and specialists on endometriosis to understand and better inform about the subject.
Endometriosis is a common inflammatory and chronic gynecological disease among women. It typically involves pain located in the pelvic area that is not alleviated by painkillers. In France, more than 4 million women are affected by endometriosis, which amounts to 15 to 20% of the population. Endometriosis can appear from the first menstrual period and last until menopause. However, women can experience pain outside of menstrual periods. This can manifest as several episodes per week, which can also occur, for instance, during a sexual encounter.
There is no cure, but symptoms can be alleviated with hormonal treatments, or as a last resort, through surgical intervention. Endometriosis can cause chronic pain and infertility. This can have a significant psychological impact on women suffering from endometriosis, affecting their social interactions, education, and work life.
How to make the diagnosis? Is the clinical examination necessary?
First, you need to consult your general practitioner or a gynecologist. However, in France, there is a considerable delay in diagnosis, ranging from 7 to 10 years. A clinical examination is not systematically required at the first consultation. However, choosing ultrasound imaging helps in making a diagnosis and eliminates differential diagnoses. As a last resort, an MRI is used to map and locate endometriosis lesions in women. Recently, a new device has emerged, the saliva test.
This is a medical device that can only be prescribed by healthcare professionals. It serves as an alternative to the clinical examination. However, this saliva test is used as a last resort. The saliva test has a reliability of 94%. It works for all types of endometriosis: superficial, deep, ovarian, extensive, and non-extensive.
The CHU of Nice specializes in abdominal-pelvic pain and endometriosis. It regularly organizes meetings of several specialists to discuss endometriosis. For patients, the CHU offers free therapeutic education workshops in groups that mainly focus on pain management. There are also consultations with three to four specialists to discuss your care plan. To contact them, just send an email to: endodouleurs@chu-nice.fr or call the Endocentre line at 06 28 18 35 10.
