We investigated the length of time between the onset of pain symptoms and the surgical diagnosis of endometriosis in women from the UK and the USA. A total of 218 women with surgically confirmed disease, recruited through endometriosis self-help groups, completed a postal questionnaire. The mean +/- SD delay in diagnosis for women from the USA was 11.73 +/- 9.05 years, significantly higher than the equivalent delay of 7.96 +/- 7.92 years for women from the UK (P < 0.01). The stage of disease did not effect the length of time between the onset of symptoms and diagnosis. Therefore there is considerable delay in the diagnosis of endometriosis for women from both the UK and the USA. Efforts to reduce this delay are required to minimize the suffering of women with this disease.
delay diagnosis endometriosis years UK USA survey, endometriosis diagnostic delay pain symptoms women, Hadfield Kennedy endometriosis diagnosis delay survey, surgically confirmed endometriosis time to diagnosis, endometriosis self-help group questionnaire diagnostic delay, endometriosis stage disease diagnostic delay correlation, pelvic pain symptoms surgical diagnosis endometriosis interval, barriers to endometriosis diagnosis women suffering, endometriosis diagnostic delay international comparison UK USA, average years delay endometriosis diagnosis postal questionnaire
PMID 8671344 8671344 DOI 10.1093/oxfordjournals.humrep.a019270 10.1093/oxfordjournals.humrep.a019270
Cite this article
Hadfield, R., Mardon, H., Barlow, D., & Kennedy, S. (1996). Delay in the diagnosis of endometriosis: a survey of women from the USA and the UK. *Human reproduction (Oxford, England)*, *11*(4), 878-880. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.humrep.a019270
Hadfield R, Mardon H, Barlow D, Kennedy S. Delay in the diagnosis of endometriosis: a survey of women from the USA and the UK. Hum Reprod. 1996;11(4):878-880. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.humrep.a019270
Hadfield, R., et al. "Delay in the diagnosis of endometriosis: a survey of women from the USA and the UK." *Human reproduction (Oxford, England)*, vol. 11, no. 4, 1996, pp. 878-880.
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