Uterine Endometrium Microbiome in Women with Repeated Implantation Failure Complicated by Endometriosis

: This prospective study evaluated whether endometriosis is associated with chronic endometritis (CE) and affects the uterine endometrium microbiome (UEM) in women with repeated implantation failure (RIF). : Forty-three women with RIF were divided into 12 with endometriosis (EM) and 31 without endometriosis (non-EM). The UEM was examined by 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequencing, and CE was determined by CD 138 staining (plasma cells > 5.15/10 mm) simultaneously. : The EM group had a higher bacterial number (EM vs. non-EM; median [range], 6.5 vs. 3 [3-11, 1-16], = 0.009), while the frequency of species did not change. The rates of presence of (41.7% [5/12] vs. 3.3% [1/31], = 0.004) and species (58.3% [7/12] vs. 16.1% [5/31], = 0.017) were higher in the EM group. The prevalence of CE did not differ between the two groups. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that the presence of species (odds ratio, 10.97, 95% confidence interval, 1.17-249.37, = 0.036) was associated with endometriosis. In the EM group, five women with species had a higher number of bacterial species (10 vs. 5 [6-11, 3-7], = 0.021) and higher Shannon diversity index (0.50 vs. 0.20 [0.19-1.39, 0.03-0.46], = 0.026) than seven without species. : and species, and the increased number of bacterial species in UEM may be related to the pathogenesis of RIF complicated by endometriosis.