Endometriosis
Symptom : The most common symptom of endometriosis is pelvic pain. The pain is often with menstruation, however a woman with endometriosis may also experience pain at other times during her monthly cycle. Another symptoms is infertility, and some women with endometriosis also experience severe fatigue.
[FONT="]Diagnosis: [/FONT]The only way to diagnose endometriosis for sure is during alaparoscopy, which is a surgical procedure. However, many physicians are able to "diagnose" endometriosis based on a woman's symptoms and start treatment on that basis.
The diagnosis of endometriosis is a challenge, and therefore an experienced gynaecologist should be able to recognise symptom suggestive of endometriosis
[FONT="]Treatment:[/FONT] [FONT="] A treatment which fully cures endometriosis has yet to be developed, and there is no overwhelming medical evidence to support one specific type of treatment for endometriosis over another. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Choosing a treatment therefore comes down to the individual woman's needs, depending on her symptoms, her age, and her fertility wishes. She should discuss these with her physician so that they, together, can determines, which long term, holistic, treatment plan is best for her individual needs. [/FONT]
[FONT="]For many women, this can be a combination of more than one treatment over longer periods of time.[/FONT]
Pain is the most common symptom for many women with endometriosis.
- simple analgesics (ie. aspirin and paracetamol)
- compound analgesics (a combination of either aspirin or paracetamol)
- mild narcotics (ie. codeine)
- narcotic analgesics (similar to morphine)
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (ie. nurofen, ponstan, voltaren, etc).