A common gynecological problem in women occurs when cells that are supposed to form in the uterus of a woman, attach themselves to tissue in other places of the body, causing pain, irregular bleeding, and problems with getting pregnant, or infertility. Let's talk about endometriosis in a little more detail.
Every month, a woman's ovaries produce hormones that tell the cells lining the uterus, or womb, to swell and thicken. The body removes these extra cells from the womb lining, or endometrium, when you get your period.
But if these cells, called endometrial cells, implant and grow outside the uterus, endometriosis results. The growths are called endometrial tissue implants. Women with endometriosis typically have tissue implants on the ovaries, or bowel, rectum, bladder, or on the lining of the pelvic area.
We don't know what causes endometriosis. One theory is that the endometrial cells that shed when you get your period travel backwards through the fallopian tubes into the pelvis, where they implant and grow. This is called retrograde menstruation. This backward menstrual flow occurs in many women, but many think the immune system may also be different in women with endometriosis.
Symptoms of endometriosis include painful periods, pain in your lower belly before and during menstruation, cramps before and during menstruation, pain during sex, painful bowel movements, as well as pelvic or lower back pain.
To treat endometriosis. . .
The goal of treatment is to improve pelvic pain, reduce pelvic masses, or improve fertility. If you have mild symptoms and do not want to have children, you may choose to have regular exams every 6 to 12 months so your doctor can make sure the disease isn't getting worse.
Treatment options also include pain medicines, hormone medicines to stop the disease from getting worse, or surgery to remove the area of endometriosis or even the entire uterus and ovaries if you have severe pain that does not get better with other treatments.
Hormone therapy doesn't cure endometriosis, but it can relieve some or all of your symptoms. Unfortunately, removal of the uterus, fallopian tubes, and both ovaries may eliminate symptoms, but it also eliminates fertility. A combination of limited surgery and assisted reproduction techniques may improve fertility. So, if you have any questions about endometriosis, please see your doctor.
Review Date: 1/27/2020
Reviewed By: LaQuita Martinez, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Emory Johns Creek Hospital, Alpharetta, GA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Cell division
1:42
Cesarean section
3:47
Conception - general
1:46
Conception - pregnancy
3:20
Conception of identical twins
0:33
Early labor
0:52
Egg cell production
3:54
Egg production
4:02
Fetal ear development
1:13
Formation of twins
3:44
Human face formation
1:57
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection
0:49
Kids - How big is the baby?
1:15
Kids - How does the baby co...
0:42
Kids - Is it a girl or boy?
1:14
Kids - Umbilical cord
1:19
Kids - Where do babies come...
0:50
Ovulation
0:38
Placenta delivery
0:57
Placenta formation
Preeclampsia
0:18
Pregnancy
1:26
Sperm production
2:28
Sperm release pathway
1:53
The role of amniotic fluid
1:45
Twin-to-twin transfusion sy...
1:11
Ultrasound
2:55
Vaginal delivery
0:53
Vasectomy
0:32
Breast engorgement
2:48
C-section
2:14
Endometriosis
2:38
Hysterectomy
2:24
Infant formulas
2:37
Newborn jaundice
2:16
NICU consultants and suppor...
3:13
Pregnancy care
3:18
Storing breast milk
2:07
24-week fetus
Abnormal discharge from the...
Abnormal menstrual periods
Absence of menstruation (am...
Amniocentesis
Amniotic fluid
Anatomy of a normal placenta
Antibodies
Baby burping position
Bananas and nausea
Before and after vasectomy
Birth control methods
Blood cells
Blood test
Breast infection
Breastfeeding
Bulging fontanelles
Candida - fluorescent stain
Caput succedaneum
Childbirth
Chorionic villus sampling
Congenital hip dislocation
Congenital toxoplasmosis
Crying - excessive (0 to 6 ...
Delivery presentations
Developmental milestones
Early weeks of pregnancy
Ectopic pregnancy
Emergency Childbirth
Endocrine glands
Endometritis
Erythroblastosis fetalis - ...
Female breast
Female reproductive anatomy
Female reproductive anatomy...
Female urinary tract
Fetal blood testing
Fetal head molding
Fetus at 10 weeks
Fetus at 12 weeks
Fetus at 16 weeks
Fetus at 26 to 30 weeks
Fetus at 3.5 weeks
Fetus at 30 to 32 weeks
Fetus at 7.5 weeks
Fetus at 8.5 weeks
First trimester of pregnancy
Folic acid
Folic acid benefits
Folic acid source
Follicle development
Fontanelles
Foreskin
Genetic counseling and pren...
Gestational ages
Gestational diabetes
Gonadotropins
Head circumference
Heat rash
Height/weight chart
Hormonal effects in newborns
Hormone-based contraceptives
Humidifiers and health
Infant blood sample
Infant care following delivery
Infant diaphragmatic hernia
Infant heat rash
Infant intestines
Infant jaundice
Infantile reflexes
Influenza vaccines
Intraductal papilloma
Intrauterine device
Intrauterine transfusion
Jaundiced infant
Large fontanelles
Large fontanelles (lateral view)
Macrosomia
Male reproductive anatomy
Male urinary tract
Mammary gland
Meconium
Morning sickness
Moro reflex
Newborn head molding
Newborn test
Normal female breast anatomy
Normal uterine anatomy (cut...
Ovarian cyst
Ovarian hypofunction
Overproductive ovaries
Pelvic adhesions
Pelvic laparoscopy
Placenta
Placenta previa
Polyhydramnios
Pregnancy test
Primary amenorrhea
Primary infertility
Secondary amenorrhea
Secondary infection
Side sectional view of fema...
Single palmar crease
Skull of a newborn
Slit-lamp exam
Sperm
Stein-Leventhal syndrome
Sunken fontanelles (superio...
The cervical cap
The diaphragm
The female condom
The male condom
Tobacco health risks
Transvaginal ultrasound
Tubal ligation
Ultrasound in pregnancy
Ultrasound, color - normal ...
Ultrasound, normal fetus - ...
Ultrasound, normal fetus - face
Ultrasound, normal fetus - foot
Ultrasound, normal placenta...
Ultrasound, normal relaxed ...
Umbilical cord healing
Uterus
Vaginal bleeding during pre...
Vaginal ring
Well baby visits
Yeast infections
CPR - infant - series
Exchange transfusion - series
Rh incompatibility - series