A prospective cohort tertiary-center study includes women undergoing laparoscopy due to pelvic endometriosis (arm 1) or/and idiopathic infertility (arm 2). A sample of 1 ml of the greater omentum is collected intraoperatively for detection of 16 PAHs, i.e. acenaphthene, acenaphthylene, anthracene, fluoranthene, fluorene, naphthalene, phenanthrene, pyrene, benz[a]anthracene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, benzo[ghi]perylene, benzo[a]pyrene, chrysene, dibenz[a,h]anthracene, and indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, by gas chromatography-isotope dilution mass spectrometry method. The concentration of selected PAHs in visceral fat in both populations will be compared. The correlation of concentrations of selected PAHs with the occurrence of infertility, pelvic pain syndrome, intensity of pain, peritoneal adhesions and the degree of endometriosis will be checked.
The health toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), present in air and food, generated during energy production and waste incineration, is well known. PAHs can activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor, which may interact with classic estrogen receptors and modify estrogen-dependent inflammation in endometriosis. There is no data on the hypothetical role of PAHs in the etiopathogenesis of endometriosis. The aim was to compare PAHs concentrations in visceral fat in women with endometriosis and idiopathic infertility.