Association between the dietary inflammatory index and pelvic inflammatory disease - Findings from the NHANES data (2015-2018)

Background: pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is a common gynecological condition. The dietary inflammatory index (DII) scoring algorithm is a novel tool for evaluating the inflammatory potential of a diet. However, the association between DII and PID remains unexplored. This study aimed to evaluate and quantify the relationship between DII and the risk for PID. Material and methods: the present study included two cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) conducted between 2015 and 2018. A total of 2769 participants with complete information were enrolled. Weighted univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the association between DII and the risk for PID. Subsequently, the association was graphically represented using a restricted cubic spline (RCS). Results: univariate and multivariate regression analyses revealed a strong correlation between DII and PID occurrence. After adjusting for all covariates, the odds ratio for the effect of DII on PID remained significant (OR = 1.220, 95 % CI: 1.024-1.452). The correlation analysis revealed a linear relationship between DII and the risk for PID. Conclusions: this study unravels a significant positive correlation between DII and the risk for PID. This finding highlights the potential of anti-inflammatory diet therapy as a novel therapeutic intervention for PID. However, due to the limitations of the study design, further research is needed to explore this relationship in detail.