Disability from endometriosis in the United States Army.

The impact of endometriosis on the general population has been well documented, and the prevalence rate is quoted as 10%. The records of 6,456 women in the United States Army were reviewed with respect to age, race and active duty status. The active duty records were further evaluated for total sick days from endometriosis-related problems. This evaluation revealed a mean sick time of 15 days per admission per active-duty patient regardless of age or race. The estimate of lost duty time was 21,746 days, considering all active-duty patients in the study (five years of records). The prevalence of endometriosis in the female U.S. Army population was 6.2%. Diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis should be aggressively pursued whenever the disease is suspected.