How do doctors test for endometriosis? Can I check myself for endometriosis?

Typically, Surgery is currently the only way to confirm a diagnosis of endometriosis. Doctors typically diagnose endometriosis by performing a pelvic exam, taking a medical history, and ordering imaging tests or a laparoscopy.

Laparoscopy is currently the most reliable way to diagnose endometriosis. Here, a thin lighted tube called a laparoscope is inserted through a small incision in the abdomen.

A careful history of menstrual symptoms and chronic pelvic pain provides the basis for suspecting endometriosis. No screening tools and tests are currently validated to accurately identify or predict individuals or populations that are most likely to have the disease.

During a pelvic exam, the doctor will feel for any abnormalities or cysts in the ovaries or uterus. However, one should know that endometriosis lesions can be small and difficult to detect during a pelvic exam.

Imaging tests such as an ultrasound or MRI may also be used to look for signs of endometriosis, but these tests are not always definitive.

With regards to checking yourself for endometriosis, there is no self-diagnosis for endometriosis.