Endometriosis: diagnosis and management

Recommendation ID: NG73/3
Question: Lifestyle interventions (diet and exercise):- Are specialist lifestyle interventions (diet and exercise) effective, compared with no specialist lifestyle interventions, for women with endometriosis?
Any explanatory notes (if applicable): Why this is important:- Endometriosis is a long-term condition that can cause acute and chronic pain, and fatigue. It has a significant and sometimes severe impact on the woman's quality of life and activities of daily living, including relationships and sexuality, ability to work, fertility, fitness and mental health.
Supporting self-management is critical to improving quality of life for women living with endometriosis. In order to successfully self-manage the condition, women need evidence-based, easily accessible information about the condition and ways of managing it that support surgical and medical treatment. However, no high-quality research was identified on the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions such as diet or exercise and other non-medical treatments in reducing pain, fatigue and other symptoms.
Studies should aim to provide evidence-based options to support self-management of endometriosis. This would improve the quality of life of women with endometriosis, enabling them to manage pain and fatigue, and reducing the negative impact on their career, relationships, sex lives, fertility, and physical and emotional wellbeing.

Source guidance details

Is this a recommendation for the use of a technology only in the context of research?	No
Is it a recommendation that suggests collection of data or the establishment of a register?	No
Last Reviewed	30/09/2017