Thanks to menstrual cycles, women frequently encounter some degree of pelvic pain every month in the form of cramps. While this type of pelvic pain is nothing unusual, millions of women struggle with chronic pelvic pain — one in seven women of childbearing age report pelvic pain that lasts for 6 months or longer.
These numbers certainly reflect what the women’s health specialists see at Kinwest OBGYN, where Dr. Jose De Leon and our team routinely consult with patients who are dealing with ongoing pelvic pain. Here’s a look at what we’ve found over the years.
To begin this discussion, we want to first point out that your pelvis hosts a number of different systems, such as your:
While there’s a lot that’s going on inside your pelvis, if you’re female, there’s a very good chance that the issue is gynecologic, which is a great place to start your investigation.
Withstanding other issues, some of the more common pain-inducing problems that involve your reproductive organs include:
One of the most common roads to chronic pelvic pain is endometriosis, which affects 11% of US women between the ages of 15 and 44. With endometriosis, cells and tissues that normally grow inside your uterus grow outside instead, often interfering with other pelvic organs.
The pelvic pain associated with endometriosis may come and go with your periods. It can also become constant pain that flares up with your menstrual cycles and when you’re having intercourse.
A majority of women develop uterine fibroids during their reproductive years. If these typically benign and harmless growths increase in number or size, or if they’re located in sensitive areas, you might encounter pelvic pain.
If you have an untreated sexually transmitted infection, it can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease and ongoing pelvic pain. This is one reason why regular STD testing is so important.
When you ovulate, your egg is encased in a follicle on the surface of your ovary. If this follicle doesn’t open all the way or becomes clogged, a cyst can form. In most cases, ovarian cysts go away on their own, but rarely they can continue to grow and become problematic, especially in terms of pelvic pain.
Cysts can also form on your ovaries due to endometriosis.
Other gynecologic issues can lead to pelvic pain, too, such as certain reproductive cancers, we’ve listed the most common culprits above.
The best way to determine what’s behind your pelvic pain and to get some relief from the discomfort is to come in and see one of our specialists. To get that ball rolling, please contact one of our offices in Dallas and Irving, Texas, to schedule a consultation.
