THE JUNCTIONAL ZONE OF THE UTERUS AND ITS PREDICTORS IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF ADENOMYOSIS
The work is devoted to the junction zone of the uterus, described in the literature using instrumental methods of investigation. The information on the morphological characteristics of this zone is limited and contradictory. In the present study, collagen of I, III, and IV types was detected using traditional histological methods (hematoxylin and eosin, Van Gyzon, Felgen, Mallory, Masson reaction) as well as the immunohistochemical analysis. Two components of the junctional zone were studied: endometrial and myometrial. The features of this zone are described in norm and under conditions of adenomyosis. It has been shown that in adenomyosis the junction zone is characterized by an increase in the volume of the amorphous component, a decrease in the proportion of the fibrillar component with replacement of type I collagen with type III collagen. The myometric portion of the junction zone is characterized by a decrease of the optical density of the nuclei and an increase of the ellipticity coefficient in them. The possible role of the revealed changes as predictors of adenomyosis is under investigation.