Endometriosis - Causes, Symptoms and Treatment
Peter Rodrick
November 02, 2008
The medical definition of endometriosis is: endometrium including both endometrial glands and stroma in an ectopic location. What that means is, tissue similar to the lining of the uterus (the endometrium) that is found living outside the uterus, usually in the female pelvis. Traditionally, both glands and stroma must be present for a diagnosis of endometriosis, but recent studies by Abrao et al in Sao Paulo have suggested that ectopic endometrium alone without stroma was enough to make the diagnosis.
Endometriosis cause
Experts do not know what causes endometrial tissue to grow outside your uterus. But they do know that the female hormone estrogen makes the problem worse. Women have high levels of estrogen during their childbearing years. It is during these years-usually from their teens into their 40s-that women have endometriosis. Estrogen levels drop when menstrual periods stop (menopause). Symptoms usually go away then.
Studies indicate that some women are genetically predisposed to developing endometriosis. According to researchers from the University of Queensland, endometriosis runs in families, which means the genetic susceptibility is inherited.
Endometrial patches may also be tender to touch or pressure, the intestinal pain may also result from endometrial patches on the walls of the colon or intestine. The amount of pain is not always related to the severity of the disease. Some women with severe endometriosis have no pain; while others with just a few small growths have incapacitating pain.
Endometriosis may result from something called "retrograde menstrual flow", in which some of the tissue that a woman sheds during her period flows into her pelvis. While most women who get their periods have some retrograde menstrual flow, not all of these women have endometriosis. Researchers are trying to uncover what other factors might cause the tissue to grow in some women, but not in others. As endometriosis does occur in rare cases in men and also seems not to be cured by hysterectomies this seems like a very far fetched idea.
Symptoms of Endometriosis
Timing of Pain. Pain at the time of menstruation (dysmenorrhea) is the primary symptom and occurs in nearly all girls and women with endometriosis. Studies suggest that endometriosis is the cause of about 15% of cases of pain in the pelvic region in women. Most women with endometriosis report pain within 2 days after their menstrual periods start.
It is only as time goes by that a woman begins to suspect that what is happening, and the symptoms she feels, are not normal. The pain of her menstrual cycle gradually and steadily becomes worse and worse as the months go by. This is only the beginning of what will become a gradual decline in a woman´s general health, as well as the health of her reproductive system.
Endometriosis can be one of the reasons for infertility in otherwise healthy couples. When laparoscopic examinations are performed for infertility evaluations, endometrial implants can be found in some of these patients, many of whom may not have painful symptoms of endometriosis. The reasons for a decrease in fertility are not completely understood, but might be due to both anatomic and hormonal factors.
How can endometriosis be treated?
Medicine, including hormones. There are two types of hormone therapy: those that will make your body think it is pregnant and those that will make your body think it is in menopause. Both are meant to stop the body from producing the messages that cause the endometrial tissue to grow. Birth control pills may be used for a few months to try to shrink the adhesions in women who want to become pregnant. Other hormones-GnRH and danazol-also may help relieve the pain of endometriosis.
For some women with mild symptoms, no further treatment other than medication for pain may be needed. For women with minimal endometriosis who want to become pregnant, doctors are saying that, depending on the age of the woman and her amount of pain from the disease, the best thing to do is to have a trial period of unprotected sex for six months to one year. If she does not get pregnant in that time, then further treatment may be needed.
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Endometriosis cause
Experts do not know what causes endometrial tissue to grow outside your uterus. But they do know that the female hormone estrogen makes the problem worse. Women have high levels of estrogen during their childbearing years. It is during these years-usually from their teens into their 40s-that women have endometriosis. Estrogen levels drop when menstrual periods stop (menopause). Symptoms usually go away then.
Studies indicate that some women are genetically predisposed to developing endometriosis. According to researchers from the University of Queensland, endometriosis runs in families, which means the genetic susceptibility is inherited.
Endometrial patches may also be tender to touch or pressure, the intestinal pain may also result from endometrial patches on the walls of the colon or intestine. The amount of pain is not always related to the severity of the disease. Some women with severe endometriosis have no pain; while others with just a few small growths have incapacitating pain.
Endometriosis may result from something called "retrograde menstrual flow", in which some of the tissue that a woman sheds during her period flows into her pelvis. While most women who get their periods have some retrograde menstrual flow, not all of these women have endometriosis. Researchers are trying to uncover what other factors might cause the tissue to grow in some women, but not in others. As endometriosis does occur in rare cases in men and also seems not to be cured by hysterectomies this seems like a very far fetched idea.
Symptoms of Endometriosis
Timing of Pain. Pain at the time of menstruation (dysmenorrhea) is the primary symptom and occurs in nearly all girls and women with endometriosis. Studies suggest that endometriosis is the cause of about 15% of cases of pain in the pelvic region in women. Most women with endometriosis report pain within 2 days after their menstrual periods start.
It is only as time goes by that a woman begins to suspect that what is happening, and the symptoms she feels, are not normal. The pain of her menstrual cycle gradually and steadily becomes worse and worse as the months go by. This is only the beginning of what will become a gradual decline in a woman´s general health, as well as the health of her reproductive system.
Endometriosis can be one of the reasons for infertility in otherwise healthy couples. When laparoscopic examinations are performed for infertility evaluations, endometrial implants can be found in some of these patients, many of whom may not have painful symptoms of endometriosis. The reasons for a decrease in fertility are not completely understood, but might be due to both anatomic and hormonal factors.
How can endometriosis be treated?
Medicine, including hormones. There are two types of hormone therapy: those that will make your body think it is pregnant and those that will make your body think it is in menopause. Both are meant to stop the body from producing the messages that cause the endometrial tissue to grow. Birth control pills may be used for a few months to try to shrink the adhesions in women who want to become pregnant. Other hormones-GnRH and danazol-also may help relieve the pain of endometriosis.
For some women with mild symptoms, no further treatment other than medication for pain may be needed. For women with minimal endometriosis who want to become pregnant, doctors are saying that, depending on the age of the woman and her amount of pain from the disease, the best thing to do is to have a trial period of unprotected sex for six months to one year. If she does not get pregnant in that time, then further treatment may be needed.
Visit Home Remedies. Do not forget to visit Erectile Dysfunction Treatment and Natural Breast Enlargement
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