Scanning electron microscopy of endometriotic lesions in the pelvic peritoneum and the histogenesis of endometriosis.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether the epithelium of an endometriotic lesion has eutopic endometrial glandular epithelium morphology or not for the histogenesis of endometriosis.

METHOD: Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the endometrium was done for 25 cases. Histologically proven endometriotic lesions of 10 of these 25 cases were processed for SEM. Peroneum samples of another 15 cases without histological endometriosis were also studied.

RESULT: Three of 10 cases with histologically proven endometriotic lesions revealed endometrium-like morphology by SEM, whereas normal appearing peritoneum without histological endometriosis in 15 cases showed no endometrium-like structures by SEM.

CONCLUSION

Although abovementioned results did not support retrograde menstruation and implantation, they suggested a possibility of derivation from the endometrium.