If you’re following Lena Dunham on her Facebook official Page, you’re now aware of her medical condition known as endometriosis. On her Facebook Page, she told her fans that she’s going to take a break to rest due to her condition.
Endometriosis is pretty common among women in their 30s and 40s. For most women with this condition, it can interfere with their career or work. According to the National Institutes of Health, this condition affects 6 to 10 percent of women in their reproductive age.
This medical condition occurs when the tissue that lines your uterus has been found outside of your uterus. When you menstruate, a few of your cells travel to your fallopian tubes. They go to your abdomen and implant themselves where they should not be. These cells also implant to other muscles or organs in your body.
When they’re implanted in other parts of the body, they continue to act as if they’re still inside the uterus. This means that these cells bleed during menstrual period. But, instead of bleeding outside of the body, they bleed inside.
What are the symptoms of endometriosis?
Unfortunately, 11 percent of women are asymptomatic. The rest of women with this condition feel pain during their menstrual cycles. Other women may develop chronic pain. As the pain gets worse, the condition causes diarrhoea, bowel problems, and other medical issues.
If it’s left untreated, the cells that implanted into the muscles and organs will grow and may cause scars. The growth can cause the patient to have difficulty in getting pregnant. She’s highly likely to become infertile.
Laparoscopic surgery
This is one of the most common ways to diagnose an endometriosis. In this procedure, a small microscope is inserted into your belly. It will look into your pelvic organs and abdominal pain. Once you’re diagnosed to have one, you may undergo treatment.
In most cases, hormonal birth control is given. This treatment controls the hormone that’s directed to the cells. But this isn’t an ideal treatment if you wish to get pregnant.
If you don’t like using a birth control, your doctor may prescribe a medicine that shuts down your system’s hormonal access. With this treatment, you’ll feel like you’re already in the menopausal stage as you’ll feel dry or lose sex drive.
For some patients, they opted for a surgical operation that removes the cells. However, the absolute cure for this condition is hysterectomy. This is a surgical operation that involves the removal of all or just part of your uterus. But this operation will only be considered by your doctor after all treatments have been tried without improving your condition.
Jus like other medical conditions, doctors are still finding reasons why some women develop it while others don’t. If you have a family member who has this condition, then you’re more likely to develop endometriosis. This means that if your mother, sister or daughter has it, it increases your risk for this condition.
Despite that, it’s still unclear whether or not genes may come into play when it comes to this condition.
