Book an initial consultationWhat is endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a chronic disease that affects about 8-15% of all women of childbearing age. Since the symptoms can be very diverse and varied, and often affect not only sexual organs, diagnosis is difficult – on average, 6-10 years pass between the first appearance and diagnosis.
This often entails a lengthy process of suffering for affected women.
The inside of the uterus is lined with a mucous membrane called the endometrium. In endometriosis, foci of endometrium-like tissue begin to settle elsewhere in the body. Endometriosis is found on the peritoneum, throughout the abdomen, on and in the ovaries and fallopian tubes, but all other abdominal organs as well as (rarely) lungs can be affected.
Endometriosis foci are subject to the hormonal cycle of the woman or grow and bleed in the same way as the lining of the uterus. Bleeding foci of endometriosis cause a local inflammatory response that further leads to:
- irritation of the nerves (and thus severe pain),
- Adhesions
- scarring and cyst formation.
Endometriosis – symptoms and self-test
Do you have very severe, increasing menstrual pain that makes everyday life a torture? Pain when urinating and on the toilet, during and after sex? Digestive problems? All of these symptoms can indicate endometriosis.
Endometriosis and pregnancy
Endometriosis can seriously limit the chance of becoming pregnant – about 40% of women affected by endometriosis suffer from an unfulfilled desire to have children.
Endometriosis affects fertility both mechanically (adhesions to the fallopian tubes prevent their patency, cysts on the ovaries reduce the number of eggs) and functionally (chronic inflammation in the context of endometriosis reduces the quality of the eggs and makes implantation more difficult or impossible).
Eendometriosis – Treatment Options
Fortunately, today we have a range of treatment options that cannot cure endometriosis, but can significantly alleviate its symptoms and prevent further progression of the disease. Hormone therapy can inhibit the growth of the foci and thus alleviate the symptoms, and surgical removal of the endometriosis foci usually leads to a significant reduction in symptoms. For women who want to have children and endometriosis, reproductive medicine offers good treatment options (hormonal stimulation to artificial insemination) – depending on the patient’s individual clinical picture.
Do you suspect that you might be affected by endometriosis?
Have you been diagnosed with endometriosis and would like support with treatment or the fulfilment of a desire to have children? Do not hesitate to contact us. We are there for you with advice, competent support and empathetic treatment.
