Objective: To determine the peritoneal fluid concentrations of interleukin-11 (IL-11) in women with endometriosis as compared with the control group.
Design: A prospective, controlled study.
Setting: The obstetrics and gynecology department of a teaching hospital and a university immunology department.
Patient(s): Sixty consecutive women undergoing laparoscopic surgery for benign gynecological indications.
Intervention(s): Peritoneal fluid was obtained during laparoscopy, and the concentration of IL-11 was measured.
Main outcome measure(s): Concentration of IL-11 in correlation with the presence of endometriosis, its stage, and the phase of the menstrual cycle.
Result(s): IL-11 was detectable in the peritoneal fluid of 64% of women tested. Concentrations of IL-11 showed no correlation with the presence of endometriosis, the American Fertility Society stage of the disease, or the phase of the menstrual cycle.
Conclusion(s): We found no evidence to suggest that IL-11 is involved in the pathogenesis of pelvic endometriosis.