During menstruation, many women have severe pain in the lower abdomen. In addition to these pains, other symptoms can be observed in girls and women, for example, general weakness, nausea, vomiting, headaches, lack of appetite, dizziness and even fainting, and sometimes there is a fever (37-37.5 ° C). In such situations, women think that they just caught a cold, and do not even suspect that the cause of all is dysmenorrhea.
Dysmenorrhea - what is it and how to deal with it?
Dysmenorrhea (translated from Latin as "disturbance during menstrual bleeding") is a cyclical pathological process, often accompanied by rather painful sensations. Sometimes the pain is so pronounced that women are forced to spend days of menstruation in bed, to miss classes in educational institutions or to be absent from the workplace. That is why dysmenorrhea is not only a medical, but also a social problem, the fact that the malaise is quite widespread is especially sad. Worldwide, 30% to 50% of women suffer from dysmenorrhea.
Classification
Dysmenorrhea is primary and secondary. Primary dysmenorrhea is detected either immediately after the onset of the first menstruation, or a few months after their onset. Pain with a malaise of this type can occur several hours before menstruation or during the first day. Primary dysmenorrhea is absolutely not associated with gynecological diseases and is functional.
Primary dysmenorrhea - what is it and what are the causes of its appearance?
The cause of this pathology may be primarily a hereditary factor. In addition, stress, problems on the personal front or in the family, as well as adverse environmental and living conditions can provoke painful menstruation . It happens that women who have this problem before the first birth, after the birth of the first-born, are happy to note that painful menstruation either completely disappeared or became less noticeable. This means that they had precisely primary dysmenorrhea, that this was not caused by any serious disturbance in the body. However, the main reason for the occurrence of such a pathology lies in neuroendocrine dysfunction, as well as in the production of a large number of prostaglandins - bioactive substances. All this leads to excessive contractions in the smooth muscles and vasospasm, hence the pain in the lower abdomen.
Secondary dysmenorrhea - what are the causes of its appearance?
Unlike primary, secondary dysmenorrhea appears in women aged 25 years or more. This happens if a woman has any organic pathology of the reproductive system, for example, inflammatory processes in the small pelvis, tumor development, endometriosis, adhesions in the small pelvis, etc. Secondary dysmenorrhea can also be caused by contraceptives used by women to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Soreness in the abdomen, as a rule, appears a day or two before the start of critical days.
Conclusion
Now you know the meaning of the word "dysmenorrhea", what kind of ailment it is and how it manifests itself. If you belong to the half of the weaker sex that suffers from dysmenorrhea, then you better not postpone the trip to the gynecologist, because it is important to find out what form of ailment is present specifically for you. Otherwise, you will have to undergo a full examination to determine the cause of its occurrence and further treatment.