BACKGROUND: Endometriosis commonly presents with a range of symptoms none of 
which are particularly specific for the condition, often resulting in 
misdiagnosis or delay in diagnosis.
AIM: To investigate gastrointestinal symptoms in women with endometriosis and 
compare their frequency with that of the classical gynaecological symptoms.
METHODS: Systematic exploration of symptoms in a consecutive series of 355 women 
undergoing operative laparoscopy for suspected endometriosis.
RESULTS: Endometriosis was confirmed by histology in 290 women (84.5%). Bowel 
lesions were present in only 7.6%. Ninety per cent of women had gastrointestinal 
symptoms, of which bloating was the most common (82.8%), but 71.3% also had 
other bowel symptoms. All gastrointestinal symptoms were similarly predictive of 
histologically confirmed endometriosis. Seventy-six women (21.4%) had previously 
been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome and 79% of them had endometriosis 
confirmed.
CONCLUSION: Gastrointestinal symptoms are nearly as common as gynaecological 
symptoms in women with endometriosis and do not necessarily reflect bowel 
involvement.