Menstual pain or period pain is often considered normal, even when it is severe. This Menstrual Hygiene Day, PatientsEngage highlights the misdiagnosis of endometriosis and what women can do to detect the condition in its early phases.
Women all over the world, have experienced menstrual pain at some point of their monthly cycles. Menstrual pain, usually begins a couple of days before the period date, and sometimes continues for two days after it. Women generally experience cramps in their lower abdomen and back, ranging from mild throbs to severe aches. The reason for period pain is associated with prostaglandins, chemicals that women’s uterus’ tissue lining produce to help the uterus contract during the menstruation cycle. Varying levels of prostaglandins’production in the body can determine the intensity of the pain.
However, sometimes these menstrual pains can also be a major symptom of Endometriosis, a condition in which women’s uterus lining – endometrium, begins to grow outside the uterus than inside it. This condition is associated with episodes of severe pelvic pain during menstruation cycles, pain during urination or bowel movements, and excessive bleeding. Lack of medical attention for a long duration, can lead to bigger health risks for the women.
Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women during their reproductive years and has been estimated to affect 200 million women across the globe, yet several cases are rarely detected in the early years. This is primarily due to lack of awareness about it, limited medical research on its causes and occurrence, and finally, delayed diagnosis.
This Menstrual Hygiene Day, PatientsEngage wants to highlight the misdiagnosis of endometriosis and what women can do to detect the condition in its early phases.
Know the symptoms of Endometriosis
Women and girls across the world face various challenges because of their menstruation, ranging from unavailability of menstrual hygiene products to lack of knowledge about their bodies and its changes. But, an additional challenge arises when moderate to severe menstrual pain is considered normal by women and doctors, causing the misdiagnosis of a possible medical condition. Endometriosis is one of them.
In many countries, dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation) is often mistook as a regular side-effect of periods, with health professionals prescribing pain-killers as a remedy. A study conducted by the National Institute of Health in US found a delay of nearly 3 – 11 years between the onset of symptoms and endometriosis’ diagnosis, putting innumerable women’s health at risk.
Ankita Deb, a PhD student at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, in her experience with endometriosis points out to the misleading diagnoses of her condition for a considerable time – “I have had IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) for years with severe gastric pains. During my periods it got worse. I have always been given medicine for my bowels, so many doctors over the years never realised I should be checked for endometriosis.” In Ankita’s case, it took another symptom for doctors to suggest an ultrasound. “I have always had severe menstrual pain, but on one occasion I had the runs that did not subside days after my periods ended. That is when I was asked very casually to get an ultrasound done. And a blood test done called CA 125, elevated levels of which indicate endometriosis.”
Currently, there is no known cure for endometriosis, but there are short-term measures - such as painkillers like ibuprofen and paracetamol, hormone medicines and contraceptives, treatments like surgery for removal of endometriosis tissues, and hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus). Although research is underway, early diagnosis and timely intervention remain the primary ways of slowing the progress of the condition.
Ankita underwent a laparotomy (surgical incision into the abdominal cavity) for the removal of endometrioma (endometrial tissue/ cyst sometimes found in the ovary) which had developed over a course of time. Her advice for women with endometriosis is to read well about the treatments available to avoid misgivings around it, “The CA 125 test is inconclusive and must be further corroborated with surgery since the same test is also for ovarian cancer.”
Check here for The Treatment Options for Endometriosis
It is thus vital for women and health professionals to work towards building open communication channels and improve knowledge around endometriosis. Girls should be taught to recognise unusual symptoms during their periods, and encouraged to speak about it. Public health campaigns should also take up the cause and draw people’s attention to it.
Menstrual Hygiene Day aims to create awareness about the challenges women face due to menstruation, and highlighting this issue can create a safe environment for women to speak about their period concerns. Public celebrities like Padma Lakshmi and Lena Dunham, have lent their voices and personal journeys with endometriosis to sensitise against the normalisation of pain and raise funds for medical research.
Whether in rural areas of Nepal where women on periods are forced to live in animal shelters, or UK where, as per a survey nearly 79% young women are embarrassed to speak to a health professional about abnormal period symptoms, the challenges to menstrual hygiene and health continue. Destigmatisation of speaking about menstrual health and timely medical intervention, are the first steps to tackle it.
Written by Mariyam Raza Haider.
Reviewed by Dr. Shital Raval
