Dysmenorrhea is a gynecological problem expressed with severe pain in the abdomen and pelvis during menstruation or a few days before.
Dysmenorrhea often occurs along with excessive bleeding.
Primary dysmenorrhea – severe menstrual pain in women.
Secondary dysmenorrhea – pain as a symptom of other gynecological problems such as endometriosis, infection of the reproductive system (pelvic inflammatory disease), including the uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes, anatomical configuration of adenomyosis and uterine problems.
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Symptoms that accompany dysmenorrhea include headache, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, chronic fatigue and pain in the lower back and hips.
The prevalence of dysmenorrhea is quite high, ranging between 40% – 90% of women. Primary dysmenorrhea occurs especially among girls and young women under the age of 25 years. Secondary dysmenorrhea is more common in women aged 30 years and older.
Primary dysmenorrhea occurs mostly in young girls and women and usually begins in the first years after the onset of menstruation. Pain can occur a few days before the onset of bleeding and is often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache or pain radiates from the pelvis to the back and hips. The pain associated with the release of prostaglandins endometrial tissue, causing muscle contractions. In a study of Swedish scientists in women with severe pain in the menstrual blood was found 20 times more prostaglandins than women who did not experience such pain.
Secondary dysmenorrhea occurs as a symptom of gynecological diseases of the uterus and the reproductive system. The most common of these is endometriosis – the growth of endometrial tissue into the peritoneal cavity. Diagnosis of endometriosis is done by pelvic examination or laparoscopy.
Other factors of secondary dysmenorrhea can be ovarian cysts, fibroids, or bacterial infections, viral, fungal pathogens or parasites.
Treatment of dysmenorrhea
Treatment of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and other drugs may relieve some cases of severe pain, antiprostaglandin drugs to reduce the amount of prostaglandins which are responsible for this phenomenon. A new generation of drugs such as valdecoxib (only directed by a physician), are effective at reducing the side effects associated with the digestive system. These drugs block the production of prostaglandins and the pain becomes less intense.
In some cases the pain can be reduced by using contraceptive drugs.
Surgical treatment. In some women the pain is so strong that the drugs do not help improve the situation. In such cases our specialists can recommend the procedure Presacral neurectomy – removal of the ganglia of the sympathetic presacral trunk to reduce the emission of nerve signals, thereby eliminating a lot of pain.
Another method is the ablation of uterine mucosa (for women who do not plan to have children in the future).
Related:
Benign tumors of the uterus (fibroid)
Endometriosis
Adhesions
Amenorrhea (absence of menstruation)
Infertility
Menorrhagia (heavy menstrual periods)
Pelvic prolapse
Vaginal infections (vaginitis), including fungal, bacterial, protozoal and viruses
Urinary incontinence
Cancer and precancerous genital conditions including ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus,cervix, vulva
