Current diagnostic options for adenomyosis in obstetric and gynecological practice
D.I. TERESHCHENKOVA1, L.I. SYRMATOVA2
1Kazan State Medical University, Kazan
2City Clinical Hospital No. 7, Kazan
Contact details:
Tereshchenkova D.I. — Assistant Lecturer of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology named after Prof. V.S. Gruzdev
Address: 49 Butlerov St., 420012 Kazan, Russian Federation, tel.: +7-937-52-75-355, e-mail: dinara.akhmetova.2496@mail.ru
The purpose — to review contemporary evidence on the definition, pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, and current diagnostic approaches to adenomyosis.
Material and methods. Review of publications based on search results in the electronic resources PubMed, Elibrary, EMBASE, and Google Scholar.
Results. Adenomyosis is defined as the presence of ectopic endometrial tissue within the myometrium. Clinical manifestations include abnormal uterine bleeding, pelvic pain, and infertility. The diagnostic accuracy of transvaginal ultrasound is comparable to that of MRI. The MUSA consensus and the European Delphi procedure have standardized sonographic criteria, classifying them into direct and indirect signs.
Conclusion. Standardized ultrasound criteria and modern reporting protocols significantly increase the reliability of non-invasive diagnosis of adenomyosis.
Key words: adenomyosis, ultrasound, MUSA consensus
REFERENCES
- Selntigia A., Molinaro P., Tartaglia S., Pellicer A., Galliano D., Cozzolino M. Adenomyosis: an update concerning diagnosis, treatment, and fertility. J. Clin. Med, 2024, vol. 13 (17), p. 5224. DOI: 10.3390/jcm13175224
- Zegers-Hochschild F., Adamson G.D., Dyer S., Racowsky C., de Mouzon J., Sokol R. et al. The International glossary on infertility and fertility care, 2017. Hum. Reprod, 2017, vol. 32 (9), pp. 1786–1801. DOI: 2.10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.06.005
- Becker C.M., Bokor A., Heikinheimo O., Horne A., Jansen F., Kiesel L. et al. ESHRE guideline: endometriosis. Hum. Reprod. Open, 2022, vol. 2022, hoac009. DOI: 3.10.1093/3.hropen3./hoac009
- García-Solares J., Donnez J., Donnez O., Dolmans M.M. Pathogenesis of uterine adenomyosis: invagination or metaplasia? Fertil. Steril, 2018, vol. 109 (3), pp. 371–379. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.12.030
- Guo S.W. The Pathogenesis of Adenomyosis vis-à-vis Endometriosis. J. Clin. Med, 2020, vol. 9 (2), p. 485. DOI: 10.3390/jcm9020485
- Khan K.N., Fujishita A., Mori T. Pathogenesis of Human Adenomyosis: Current Understanding and Its Association with Infertility. J. Clin. Med, 2022, vol. 11 (14), p. 4057. DOI: 10.3390/jcm11144057
- Zhai J., Vannuccini S., Petraglia F., Giudice L.C. Adenomyosis: Mechanisms and Pathogenesis. Semin. Reprod. Med, 2020, vol. 38 (2–03), pp. 129–143. DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1716687
- Endometrioz. Klinicheskiye rekomendatsii [Endometriosis. Clinical guidelines]. Moscow, 2024. 62 p.
- Moawad G., Fruscalzo A., Youssef Y., Kheil M., Tawil T., Nehme J. et al. Adenomyosis: an updated review on diagnosis and classification. J. Clin. Med, 2023, vol. 12 (14), p. 4828. DOI: 10.3390/jcm12144828
- Kolovos G., Dedes I., Imboden S., Mueller M. Adenomyosis — a call for awareness, early detection, and effective treatment strategies: a narrative review. Healthcare, 2024, vol. 12, p. 1641. DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12161641
- Munro M.G., Critchley H.O.D., Fraser I.S., FIGO Menstrual Disorders Committee The two FIGO systems for normal and abnormal uterine bleeding symptoms and classification of causes of abnormal uterine bleeding in the reproductive years: 2018 revisions. Int. J. Gynaecol. Obstet, 2018, vol. 143, pp. 393–408. DOI: 10.1002/ijgo.12666
- Pinzauti S., Lazzeri L., Tosti C., Centini G., Orlandini C., Luisi S. et al. Transvaginal sonographic features of diffuse adenomyosis in 18-30-year-old nulligravid women without endometriosis: association with symptoms. Ultrasound Obstet. Gynecol, 2015, vol. 46, pp. 730–736. DOI:10.1007/978-3-030-52984-0_17
- Gordts S., Grimbizis G., Campo R. Symptoms and classification of uterine adenomyosis, including the place of hysteroscopy in diagnosis. Fertil. Steril, 2018, vol. 109, pp. 380–388.e1. DOI: 13.10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.01.006
- Chen Q., Li Y.W., Wang S., Fan Q.B., Shi H.H., Leng J.H. et al. Clinical manifestations of adenomyosis patients with or without pain symptoms. J. Pain Res, 2019, vol. 12, pp. 3127–3133. DOI: 10.2147/JPR.S212117
- Vidal A., Tepasse P., Vinayahalingam V., Cottagnoud S., Gulz M., Karrer T. et al. Uterine contractility changes in adenomyosis: evidence from a systematic review and meta-analysis. Biomedicines, 2025, vol. 13 (11), pp. 2728. DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines13112728
- Younes G., Tulandi T. Effects of adenomyosis on in vitro fertilization treatment outcomes: a meta-analysis. Fertil. Steril, 2017, vol. 108, pp. 483–490. DOI: 16. 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.06.025
- Szubert M., Koziróg E., Olszak O., Krygier-Kurz K., Kazmierczak J., Wilczynski J. Adenomyosis and Infertility-Review of Medical and Surgical Approaches. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 2021, vol. 18 (3), p. 1235. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18031235
- Wang S., Duan H. The role of the junctional zone in the management of adenomyosis with infertility. Front. Endocrinol. (Lausanne), 2023, vol. 14. 1246819. DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1246819
- Mochimaru A., Aoki S., Oba M.S., Kurasawa K., Takahashi T., Hirahara F. Adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with adenomyosis with uterine enlargement. J. Obstet. Gynaecol. Res, 2015, vol. 41 (4), pp. 529–533. DOI: 19.10.1111/jog.12604
- Vannuccini S., Clifton V.L., Fraser I.S., Taylor H.S., Critchley H., Giudice L.C., Petraglia F. Infertility and reproductive disorders: impact of hormonal and inflammatory mechanisms on pregnancy outcome. Hum. Reprod. Update, 2016, vol. 22 (1), pp. 104–115. DOI: 20.10.1093/20.humupd20./dmv044
- Van den Bosch T., Dueholm M., Leone F.P., Valentin L., Rasmussen C.K., Votino A. et al. Terms, definitions and measurements to describe sonographic features of myometrium and uterine masses: a consensus opinion from the Morphological Uterus Sonographic Assessment (MUSA) group. Ultrasound Obstet. Gynecol, 2015, vol. 46 (3), pp. 284–298. DOI: 10.1002/uog.14806.
- Tellum T., Nygaard S., Skovholt E.K., Qvigstad E., Lieng M. Development of a clinical prediction model for diagnosing adenomyosis. Fertil. Steril, 2018, vol. 110 (5), pp. 957–964.e3. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.06.009.
- Harmsen M.J., Van den Bosch T., de Leeuw R.A., Dueholm M., Exacoustos C., Valentin L. et al. Consensus on revised definitions of Morphological Uterus Sonographic Assessment (MUSA) features of adenomyosis: results of modified Delphi procedure. Ultrasound Obstet. Gynecol, 2022, vol. 60 (1), pp. 118–131. DOI: 23. 10.1002/uog.24786
- Van den Bosch T., de Bruijn A.M., de Leeuw R.A., Dueholm M., Exacoustos C., Valentin L. et al. Sonographic classification and reporting system for diagnosing adenomyosis. Ultrasound Obstet. Gynecol, 2019, vol. 53 (5), pp. 576–582. DOI: 24.10.1002/uog.19096
- Chapron C., Vannuccini S., Santulli P., Abrão M.S., Carmona F., Fraser I.S. et al. Diagnosing adenomyosis: an integrated clinical and imaging approach. Hum. Reprod. Update, 2020, vol. 26 (3), pp. 392–411. DOI: 25.10.1093/25.humupd/dmz049
- Agostinho L., Cruz R., Osório F., Alves J., Setúbal A., Guerra A. MRI for adenomyosis: a pictorial review. Insights Imaging, 2017, vol. 8 (6), pp. 549–556. DOI: 10.1007/s13244-017-0576-z
- Tellum T., Nygaard S., Lieng M. Noninvasive diagnosis of adenomyosis: a structured review and meta-analysis of diagnostic accuracy in imaging. J. Minim. Invasive Gynecol, 2020, vol. 27 (3), pp. 688–698.e3. DOI: 10.1016/j.jmig.2019.11.001


