Endometriosis

What is endometriosis?

Within your uterus is a lining called the endometrial lining. When it sheds approximately once a month, you get your period. Before that happens, many women experience cramping as the endometrium thickens and breaks down.

If you have endometriosis, endometrial tissue grows outside the confines of your uterus. It can grow on other tissues and organs in your pelvis and abdomen. Like the lining of your uterus, the endometrial tissue outside your uterus thickens and breaks down every month. However, it has nowhere to exit. 

When the endometrial tissue irritates other tissue, scars and adhesions can form. This causes pain or severe discomfort for many women living with endometriosis. 

What are the symptoms of endometriosis?

Endometriosis often causes pain, especially during your menstrual periods when you would generally experience menstrual cramps. This pain is often severe or even debilitating. It’s also worse than the average menstrual cramp.

Other symptoms you might get from endometriosis include:

• Excessive menstrual bleeding or bleeding between periods
• Infertility
• Painful intercourse
• Fatigue
• Diarrhea
• Bloating
• Constipation
• Nausea

The experts on the team at Women’s Care of Beverly Hills examine you and can diagnose endometriosis based on your symptoms and the results of certain imaging tests, like ultrasound imaging. They can treat your condition, and if you decide you want to get pregnant, they can treat many of the fertility problems it causes too. 

How is endometriosis treated?

Women’s Care of Beverly Hills provides testing services and treatments for endometriosis and the discomfort it causes. They usually recommend more conservative options before recommending invasive therapies or gynecologic surgeries.

If you don’t plan on getting pregnant in the foreseeable future, the team may put you on oral contraceptives or another type of hormone therapy to regulate your menstrual cycle. These treatments slow the growth of endometrial tissue, thus reducing your pain. They’re not a cure but can provide long-term relief and reduce long term complications. 

Surgery is usually not the first line of treatment, but certain techniques can help with endometriosis. Thanks to innovations like laparoscopy and robot assistance, surgeries for endometriosis are minimally invasive. They involve the physical removal of endometrial tissue. 

Explore your treatment options for endometriosis by calling Women’s Care of Beverly Hills or booking an appointment online today.