Infections and the Reproductive Microbiome Chronic Endometritis

Chronic endometritis due to common bacteria is prevalent in women with recurrent miscarriage as confirmed by improved pregnancy outcome after antibiotic treatment

Cicinelli E, Matteo M, Tinelli R, Pinto V, Marinaccio M, Indraccolo U, Resta L, de Ziegler D

Published May 2014 Reproductive Sciences (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), 21(5), 640-647
DOI 10.1177/1933719113508817 PMID 24177713 PMC PMC3984485

RRM Academy Synopsis

Chronic endometritis found in 57.8% of recurrent miscarriage patients

A look back at 360 Italian women with unexplained recurrent miscarriage found chronic endometritis in 208. This is a low-grade inflammation of the womb lining. About 8 out of 10 women whose inflammation cleared on antibiotics had a successful pregnancy within a year. Under 2 out of 10 did when it persisted after the same treatment.

Study at a glance, cohort study: Chronic endometritis was found in 57.8% of recurrent miscarriage patients
Study at a glance, cohort study of 360 Italian women: Chronic endometritis was found in 57.8% of recurrent miscarriage patients. Source: Cicinelli E et al., 2014, PMID 24177713.

Key Findings

  • Hysteroscopy showed chronic endometritis in 208 of 360 women (57.8%); 190 of those 208 (91.3%) were also positive on histology.
  • Endometrial cultures were positive in 142 of the 208 (68.3%); common bacteria were found in 110 of the 142 (77.5%).
  • Mycoplasma and Ureaplasma were found in 36 of the 142 (25.3%), and Chlamydia in 18 (12.7%).
  • After antibiotics matched to the cultured bacteria, tests normalized in 102 of 142 women (group 1); chronic endometritis persisted in 40 (28.2%, group 2).
  • One year after treatment, 78.4% of group 1 had a successful pregnancy, against 17.5% of group 2 (P < .001).

Interpretation

This cohort study followed 142 women with chronic endometritis after recurrent miscarriage. Antibiotic treatment cleared the inflammation in some women and not in others. Clearing the inflammation was linked with a much higher rate of pregnancy within the next year. The authors call for larger randomized trials to confirm these findings.

RRM Context

All 360 women carried the label unexplained recurrent miscarriage. A look inside the uterus found visible signs of inflammation in more than half. This fits the RRM principle that unexplained means undiagnosed. A cause-based approach looks for the reason before accepting the label.

Abstract

Recurrent miscarriage (RM) is defined as 3 or more miscarriages before 20 weeks' pregnancy. In recent years, interest has been focused on chronic endometritis (CE), a subtle inflammation thought to be associated with RM. We aimed to evaluate the relationships between CE and RM. The records of 360 women with unexplained RM were retrospectively analyzed. Data from hysteroscopy, endometrial histology, endometrial culture, and polymerase chain reaction for chlamydia, performed before and after antibiotic treatment for CE, were analyzed. The occurrence of successful pregnancies within 1 year after treatment was also evaluated. Results showed that 208 (57.8%) women with RM showed CE at hysteroscopy; 190 (91.3%), positive at hysteroscopy, were also positive at histology, and 142 (68.3%) had positive cultures. Common bacteria were found in 110 (77.5%) patients. Mycoplasma and Ureaplasma were found in 36 (25.3%) patients and Chlamydia in 18 patients (12.7%). In 102 (71%) women, antibiogram-based antibiotic treatment normalized hysteroscopy, histology, and cultures (group 1); while in 40 (28.2%) patients, CE was still present at hysteroscopy (group 2). In 16 of the 66 patients positive at hysteroscopy, but not at cultures, the hysteroscopy becomes normal (group 3) after a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-based therapy; while in 50 women, CE was still present (group 4). One year after treatment, group 1 showed a significantly higher number of pregnancies (78.4%) compared to group 2 (17.5%; P < .001) and group 4 (15.3%; P = .005). The CE is frequent in women with RM. Antibiotic treatment seems to be associated with an improved reproductive outcome.

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Infections and the Reproductive Microbiome › Chronic Endometritis › Endometritis and Reproductive Outcomes · Infertility › Recurrent Pregnancy Loss › Anatomic Causes · Diagnostics › Microbiome and Infection Testing › Culture and Infection Testing
Ettore Cicinelli, Maria Matteo, Raffaele Tinelli, Vincenzo Pinto, Marco Marinaccio, Ugo Indraccolo, Dominique De Ziegler, Leonardo Resta
E Cicinelli, M Matteo, R Tinelli, V Pinto, M Marinaccio, U Indraccolo, D Ziegler, L Resta
PMID 24177713 24177713 DOI 10.1177/1933719113508817 10.1177/1933719113508817 Cicinelli et al. 2014, Cicinelli 2014