Home  Endometriosis What is it? Endometriosis
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Endometriosis is a chronic condition, which affects up to 10% of women of childbearing age. It is associated with pain, which can be very severe, particularly around the time of menstruation (the ‘period’) and infertility.
In women with infertility or in those who suffer from severe pain, the frequency of endometriosis can increase to 35-50%.
MYTH
Endometriosis occurs because the woman has not had a baby
FACT
Endometriosis MAY be the cause of not being able to have a baby |
Endometriosis can affect women from all walks of life, during their childbearing years. It is related to the hormonal changes that occur during the menstrual cycle.
MYTH
Endometriosis is a disease of the slim career women in their late thirties with no children – ‘briefcase woman’.
FACT
Endometriosis occurs in women of all races, weights and socioeconomic background and even in women who have had children. |
Endometriosis derives its name from the abnormal growth of the endometrium, the tissue that normally lines the womb (uterus). During the menstrual cycle the endometrium increases in thickness to receive the fertilised egg. If pregnancy does not occur then it is shed with blood as the ‘period’.
In endometriosis, pieces of endometrial tissue (implants) are found growing in parts of the body outside the womb (uterus). This usually occurs in the abdomen and pelvic area, which surround the womb, but is occasionally seen in distant sites, such as the lungs and limbs. This tissue can attach (implant) itself and grow on many organs e.g. the ovaries, fallopian tubes, bladder and intestines (bowels). Such growth can lead to adhesions, which are bands of scar like tissue that form between tissues within the body. This can lead to distortion of the normal structure of these organs resulting in pain, infertility and disturbances in the way the bladder and bowels function.
This implanted endometrial tissue, like that in the womb, responds to the changes in hormones that occur during the menstrual cycle. However, unlike the lining of the womb, which is shed with blood during menstruation, blood from these implants has NO direct way of leaving the body.
Therefore internal bleeding, inflammation and internal scarring can occur which can increase the amount of pain and discomfort.
Sometimes cysts called endometriomas (also known as ‘chocolate cysts due to the dark chocolate coloured fluid they contain) can develop in the ovaries. If such a cyst bursts it can cause excruciating pain.
| Endometriosis is NOT cancer, it is NOT contagious and it is NOT an infection. |
Since endometriosis is associated with menstruation, sex, infertility, and pain (all taboo subjects in most societies) it is a disease that is not well known, understood, or accepted by the general public. |
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