Adverse Childhood Experiences Tied to Endometriosis Risk

FRIDAY, June 13, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Early life adversity is associated with an increased risk of being diagnosed with endometriosis later in life, according to a study published online June 11 in Human Reproduction.

Marika Rostvall, from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues conducted a prospective cohort study to examine whether childhood adversity is associated with a subsequent diagnosis of endometriosis. Analysis included data from roughly 1.3 million women born in Sweden between 1974 and 2001 (24,311 individuals with endometriosis).

The researchers found that all examined adversities except familial death were associated with an increased risk of later endometriosis diagnosis. The strongest association with endometriosis risk was for exposure to violence (hazard ratio, 2.38), and the weakest association was for having a teenage parent (hazard ratio, 1.20). Having experienced any adversity was significantly associated with a 20 percent increased risk for endometriosis diagnosis, but risk increased with increasing number of adversities, with an up to 60 percent increase in risk for those with five or more adversities. Results persisted in adjusted analysis.

“The results suggest that early life experiences can affect the body”s health much later in life and highlight the importance of looking at the whole person, not just the symptoms,” Rostvall said in a statement.

One author disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text