Kristen Upson

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are exogenous compounds that can deleteriously affect gynecologic health through interference with hormonal systems. Research on EDC exposure and gynecologic health has generally focu…

BACKGROUND: Adenomyosis can confer life-altering symptoms such as pelvic pain. Yet, the epidemiologic study of this uterine condition lags other gynaecologic conditions. This includes the investigation of intrauterine exposures that could d…

Chronic pelvic pain is heterogeneous with potentially clinically informative subgroups. We aimed to identify subgroups of pelvic pain based on symptom patterns and investigate their associations with inflammatory and chronic pain-related co…

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between breastfeeding history, including lifetime exclusive breastfeeding, and risk of adenomyosis. DESIGN: We used data from a case-control study designed with 2 control groups to address the challen…

OBJECTIVE: To investigate cannabis smoking and tobacco cigarette smoking in relation to adenomyosis risk. DESIGN: We used data from a case-control study of adenomyosis conducted among enrollees ages 18-59 years of an integrated health care…

BACKGROUND: Metals may influence reproductive health, but few studies have investigated correlates of metal body burden among reproductive-aged women outside of pregnancy. Furthermore, while there is evidence of racial disparities in exposu…

BACKGROUND: Uterine fibroids are highly prevalent, benign tumors. They are the leading indication for hysterectomy, and Black women are disproportionally burdened. Soy-based infant formula contains phytoestrogens, and exposure during sensit…

STUDY QUESTION: Is exposure to toxic metal cadmium associated with increased endometriosis prevalence among a nationally representative sample of the US population? SUMMARY ANSWER: Concentrations of urinary cadmium, a long-term biomarker (…

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Menstrual blood loss, a common physiologic occurrence, provides an excretion route for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) since these chemicals are bound to proteins in blood. To increase awareness of this relatio…

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Menstrual bleeding is a regular, common occurrence in a substantial portion of the population. Menstruators may use more than 10,000 menstrual products over the lifetime. Given the potential for environmental chemicals in…

BACKGROUND: Injectable contraceptive use is common, with 74 million users worldwide. Use of the injectable contraceptive depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) is associated with bone mineral density loss. We hypothesize that increased bo…

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Recent studies of environmental chemicals and endometriosis were critically evaluated from the epidemiologic perspective to identify aspects of study design and analyses that may contribute to discrepant results across st…

Adenomyosis, characterized by the presence of endometrial glands and stroma within the myometrium, can have a substantial impact on the quality of women's lives. Despite this, the epidemiologic research on this condition lags considerably b…

BACKGROUND: Phytoestrogen exposure from soy formula feeding during infancy may disrupt reproductive system development, resulting in altered menstrual bleeding in adulthood. METHODS: We investigated this relationship in a cohort of 1,696 y…

OBJECTIVE: To study early-life factors in relation to endometriosis risk in adulthood. DESIGN: Population-based case-control study. SETTING: Integrated healthcare system. PATIENT(S): Cases (n = 310) were women diagnosed for the first tim…

STUDY QUESTION: Is bisphenol A (BPA) exposure associated with the risk of endometriosis, an estrogen-driven disease of women of reproductive age? SUMMARY ANSWER: Our study suggests that increased urinary BPA is associated with an increased…

BACKGROUND: Endometriosis is considered an estrogen-dependent disease. Persistent environmental chemicals that exhibit hormonal properties, such as organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), may affect endometriosis risk. OBJECTIVE: We investigated…

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2013

BACKGROUND: Phthalates are ubiquitous environmental chemicals with endocrine disruptive properties. The impact of these chemicals on endocrine-related disease in reproductive-age women is not well understood. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the …