Endometriosis Pain, Causes And Treatments

If the endometriosis damages your fallopian tubes or your ovaries, they may stick together and stop working properly. If this happens, you may have difficulty getting pregnant.

There are millions of women today that deal with endometriosis pain. Endometriosis symptoms may be more noticeable close to your period.

Endometriosis

This disease happens when endometrial tissue, the tissue in the uterus lining ends up outside of the uterus. The endometrial stroma and glands, which should only be located inside the uterus is found elsewhere in the body. It can end up in the abdomen, covering the fallopian tubes, ovaries, the vulva, bowel, vagina and other areas of body as well causing endometriosis pain.

Another idea from some is that the tissue from the uterus can be distributed to other body parts, traveling through the circulatory system or through the lymph system. Some people theorize that this problem may be genetic, with certain people being more likely to develop endometriosis because of their family history. Yet another theory is that tissue left over from when the women was yet an embryo can end up developing later in life, causing endometriosis to occur. There have even been some links found between a chemical called TCCD and the development of this disease.

How is Endometriosis Diagnosed?

Diagnosing endometriosis can be quite difficult in many cases, which is why many women suffer from this problem without knowing it confusing the signs and symptoms of endometriosis pain with other causes. Many doctors don't even want to do the needed diagnostic tests to find out if endometriosis is the problem. Usually it takes a laparoscopy to figure out whether there is a problem with Endometriosis. This is considered to be a minor surgery. Usually a small incision is made in the belly button, and a camera is put into the abdomen to see if there are growths there and if there are, where they are and their size. This is the only real way that this disease can be accurately diagnosed.

So what exactly causes endometriosis to occur?

Well, there is no one cause that doctors agree upon, although many have some theories on what cause endometriosis problems to occur. Endometriosis symptoms may be more noticeable close to your period. One theory is that during your period, some of the tissue can back up, going through the fallopian tubes, then into the abdomen. It can grow in the abdomen,but usually there is not a problem for many women. However, in some women, a problem with hormones or the immune system can allow the tissue to continue to grow, causing endometriosis to occur.

What Happens To The Endometriosis?

And every month the patches break away and bleed, just like the lining of your womb does when you have your period. This extra blood can't drain away quickly. Your body does slowly get rid of the blood, but it causes problems while it's inside your pelvis. The extra blood can damage the area around the patch of endometriosis. And it can stop organs from working properly. You may get scars or small bags of fluid called cysts.

If the endometriosis damages your fallopian tubes or your ovaries, they may stick together and stop working properly. If this happens, you may have difficulty getting pregnant.

Other Endometriosis Symptoms

Infertility, painful urination while you are having your period, bowel movements that are painful, diarrhea, nausea, allergies, yeast infections, and constipation are also endometriosis symptoms. If you are experiencing some of these symptoms, it is a good idea to see your primary care physician or your gynecologist.

Endometriosis can also cause scar tissue and adhesions to develop that can distort a woman’s internal anatomy. In advanced stages, internal organs may fuse together, causing a condition known as a frozen pelvis." Endometriosis symptoms can be confused with other conditions. Endometriosis pain can be confused with ovulation or painful monthly periods.

Treatment Options for Endometriosis

Since no one is quite sure of the exact cause of endometriosis, However, there are some treatments out there that can provide relief for the endometriosis pain. Often the treatments depend on the symptoms that the woman is showing, and in many cases it is a combination of treatments that end up working best.

Women with endometriosis deal with so many pain killers to stop the endometriosis pain. Some of the painkillers used include analgesics, mild narcotics, or non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs. Hormone therapies are often used to treat this problem, such as birth control pills, progestin pills, the Mirena IUD, and various hormonal injections.

In many cases surgery is needed to help treat women for endometriosis. Often through a laparoscopic procedure,surgeons can go in and remove this tissue. In other cases, a hysterectomy is needed to take care of the problem, although the problem can still recur even after this surgery in some cases.