Arm Groups

Study Contact

Detailed Description

Pre-Study Period Participants will be recruited via the pain and Ob/Gyn clinics and via EPIC. Potential participants might be identified via EPIC records using age, sex, diagnoses, notes, problem list, medications, date of scheduled surgery, name of physician performing the surgery, and phone number. A research staff member will contact a potential participant and provide a description of the project. Potentially eligible participants will be invited to participate in the study, which will be conducted at Washington University School of Medicine. Participants will also be provided with a written summary or the consent of the study. The consent will be signed electronically, using Docusign e-consent process or remotely during a phone call or a video call (WUSTL Zoom) with a study staff or in person. Study Design After confirming the inclusion criteria and signing the consent form, patients with pelvic pain potentially due to endometriosis will complete a 2.5 hours study visit of psychophysical assessments of thermal and pressure stimuli. Patients will also complete various questionnaires including demographic, social, health, behavioral, and psychological questionnaires. . For adolescents, a parent/legal guardian will be asked to assist in completing some of the health-related surveys (i.e., physical developmental survey, health survey, migraine history survey). Obstetric, gynecologic, fertility, and surgical history will be abstracted from the medical record and/or via health history interview. These procedures will be completed before the surgery. During the surgery, the endometriosis lesions will be excised as part of routine care. At least one lesion will be sent to pathology and one lesion for the study team. In the absence of lesions, peritoneally biopsies of bilateral infra-ovarian fossa will be collected per routine practice. One will be sent to pathology, and one for the study team. Vials of health abdominal peritoneum, and endometrial biopsy (if uterus present) will be collected for study purpose. Before or on the day of the surgery, blood, urine, and/or saliva samples will be collected for hormonal, immune and genetic testing. Additional samples will be stored in a biobank for future hormonal, immune and/or genetic analyses. In addition, after the surgery, participants will be asked to complete surveys assessing pain and other symptoms which will be sent every week for the first month and then monthly for 1 year. After the surgery, participants will have the option to return for additional study visits that will include the same psychophysical procedures and collection of blood (about 20 ml), urine, and/or saliva samples (3 months, 6 months and 1 year after surgery). During the study period, new about pelvic pain, new/changes in diagnosis, treatment changes (medication titration, physical therapy, mental health, and alternative therapies), surgery related data, additional pain-related diagnoses, and additional markers (i.e., vitamin D, hormone levels) will also be collected via EPIC and/or health history interview. All study procedures are optional and participants can stop or not complete tests if they want. Participants need to meet all the inclusion criteria to be included in the study. After consenting and the first study visit, changes in health will not automatically lead to excluding participants from the study. Before the follow-up visits, the investigators will ask the participants about changes in their health (from the last visit). Based on the responses, continuation/withdrawal from the study and/or omission of study activities will be determined at the discretion of the PI and/or study staff.