Cervical erosion is a pathology that is damage to the flat epithelium of the cervix, which is located around the external pharynx on its vaginal part. Externally, this defect manifests itself as a small red spot that occurs around the opening of the cervical canal. It is worth noting that erosion or, as it is also called, ectopia occurs in about half of women who are of reproductive age. Erosion does not occur in women after 40 years. Cervical erosion should be diagnosed and treated for the reason that it can cause the development of polyps and cancer.
The content of the article:
Cervical erosion: what is it?
Types of cervical erosion
Causes and mechanism of cervical erosion
Diagnosis of cervical erosions and pseudoerosions
Treatment of cervical erosion
Diathermocoagulation of cervical erosion
Cryodestruction of cervical erosion
Laserporization of cervical erosion
Radio wave method for removing cervical erosion
Cervical erosion
Cervical erosion: what is it?
Cervical erosion is one of the most common gynecological diseases, which can be triggered by various reasons. Before describing the causes and methods of treatment of erosion, it is worth first paying attention to the fact that this is erosion of the cervix. To begin with, it must be said that the cervix is the lower part of the uterus, which protrudes into the vaginal cavity. The cervical canal passes through it, the upper part of which ends with an internal pharynx, and the lower with an external pharynx. Damage to the squamous epithelium located around the external pharynx of the cervix is just manifested in the form of erosion.
Types of cervical erosion
In most cases, cervical erosion is quite a normal condition for young women. Moreover, it occurs in almost all girls who have not yet reached adolescence. Often this pathology has no symptoms, so only a doctor can detect it during an examination. In this regard, it is worth noting that every woman should definitely undergo a routine medical examination several times a year. In some cases, erosion does not cause any problems and does not need treatment.
Sometimes ectopia can still cause some inconvenience. Namely: women often complain of unpleasant sensations that often occur after sexual intercourse, as well as excessive vaginal discharge. In this regard, it is worth noting that doctors distinguish several types of erosion, each of which has its own symptoms. Depending on the type of erosion, its treatment is prescribed or not. There are three main types of cervical erosion: true, pseudo-erosion and congenital.
True erosion
True erosion is often damage to the squamous epithelium, which is located on the outside of the throat of the cervix. Less often, erosion of the cervix appears on her lip or the back of the throat. This defect manifests itself as a bright red rounded area of small size. But sometimes the entire epithelium can be damaged — a large erosion of the cervix. In addition, this type of cervical erosion is characterized by the manifestation of inflammation.
Since endocervicitis is often the cause of true cervical erosion, purulent discharge appears on the affected areas of the flat epithelium. It is also worth noting that during a colposcopic examination, traces of blood, fibrin, mucous secretions, as well as swelling and dilated vessels are visible on the damaged surface.
Pseudo – erosion
1-2 weeks after the onset of true cervical erosion, it enters the healing stage and the development of pseudoerosion begins. As a result of healing, the flat epithelium is replaced by a cylindrical one, the cells of which have a brighter and richer color. Therefore, the damaged surface of the epithelium remains bright red. The replacement of the squamous epithelium with a cylindrical one is the first stage of healing of true cervical erosion. Often, it is at this stage that a gynecologist diagnoses it.
It should be noted that the proliferation of cylindrical epithelium can occur not only on the surface of the throat of the cervix, on which erosion has formed, but spread to other areas in the form of branching glandular passages. In these glands, an accumulation of secretions may gradually occur, due to the difficulty of outflow of which cysts begin to form over time. Their size can be very different: from the smallest to very large, which resemble polyps. It is worth noting that multiple cysts provoke a gradual thickening of the cervix.
If pseudoerosion is not treated, it can persist for several years until it is eliminated. The result of the treatment of pseudoerosion is the reverse process of changing the cylindrical epithelium to a flat one. At the second stage of erosion healing, the epithelium of the cervical pharynx is restored. But it is worth noting that the treatment should be timely. Otherwise, it can lead to changes in epithelial cells, which may even be considered as a precancerous condition. Symptoms of pseudoerosion can be bleeding during sexual intercourse or examination.
Congenital erosion
There is also congenital erosion, which is a displacement of the cylindrical epithelium of the cervical canal. As a rule, it is found in childhood or adolescence. It often proceeds asymptomatically. Since the displacement of the epithelium occurs in the fetus even in the intrauterine period, this type of erosion is called congenital. Usually, such erosion occupies a small area near the external pharynx, has a smooth surface and a bright red color. If congenital erosion persists until puberty, infection and inflammation may occur.
Causes and mechanism of cervical erosion
Cervical erosion, the causes of which can be very different, can be triggered by an infection. The most common causes of cervical erosion are cervicitis and endocervicitis. Both of these diseases are characterized by pathological secretion from the cervical canal of the uterus. As a result, it irritates the surface of the cervix, which subsequently leads to rejection of the squamous epithelium. It is these pathological processes that lead to the formation of true erosion.
If you are interested in what causes cervical erosion to appear, also pay attention to the following reason: it is a change in the level of sex hormones-steroids. This is due to the fact that quite often cervical erosion, the symptoms of which are practically not detected before the examination, appears during pregnancy or in the postpartum period.
Damage to the epithelial cover of the uterus also appears as a result of ectropion or, as it is also called, inversion of the mucous membrane of the cervix, the cause of which is birth trauma. In addition, experts attribute the early onset of sexual activity, a decrease in the protective functions of the body and problems with the hormonal background to the causes of the appearance and development of pathology.
Diagnosis of cervical erosions and pseudoerosions
Cervical erosion, the treatment of which is necessary to prevent dysplasia, is one of the most common gynecological diseases. In this regard, we can recommend that women periodically undergo an examination by a gynecologist in order not to miss the beginning of its development. If a woman has changes in the cervix, first of all it is necessary to diagnose and exclude viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic infections. At the same time, the most common causes of irritation of the external pharynx of the cervix are infections such as candidiasis, genital herpes, trichomoniasis and others. As for gonorrhea and chlamydia infections, they most often affect the cervical canal. Each of these types of inflammation should be thoroughly examined and diagnosed.
Another method of diagnosing cervical erosion is the study of a cytological smear. If the results of the study did not show dysplasia, colposcopy can be performed — to examine the affected area under magnification. At the same time, doctors note that the results of cytology and colposcopy should coincide. Otherwise, a second examination should be carried out only after three months. If the doctor has a suspicion of cervical cancer or previous examinations have shown conflicting results, he may prescribe a biopsy.
This diagnostic method is prescribed in order to detect cervical dysplasia — a precancerous condition. At the same time, the complexity of diagnosis in this case lies in the fact that even the most advanced erosion may not necessarily be a precancerous condition. But on the other hand, a completely healthy-looking cervix may have areas with precancerous changes. After a biopsy, a woman should avoid sexual contact for a week to avoid new damage to the cervical mucosa and infection of it.
Treatment of cervical erosion
During the treatment of cervical erosion, doctors adhere to several basic principles. Firstly, congenital pathology should not be treated, but only monitored. Secondly, pseudo-erosions and true erosions need to be treated together with the diseases that caused or support them. Thirdly, if the gynecologist found during the examination that the cause of damage to the cervical epithelium was inflammation, treatment should be directed primarily at the pathogens of infection.
Thirdly, erosions that are in the active stage are treated in more gentle ways. Namely, for this purpose, tampons with fish oil, sea buckthorn oil, aerosols with a high content of antibiotics are often used. All modern methods used to treat cervical erosion are aimed at destroying the cells of the cylindrical epithelium and restoring the flat epithelium on the damaged surface. To achieve this goal, the following measures are used: laser vaporization, diathermocoagulation, cryodestruction, radio wave method.
Diathermocoagulation of cervical erosion
This method involves cauterization of damaged tissue under the influence of a low-frequency alternating electric current. It is worth noting that diathermocoagulation is not desirable for the treatment of cervical erosion in nulliparous women. This is due to the fact that one of the complications of such treatment may be the formation of scars, which can create obstacles to the opening of the cervix during childbirth.
It is worth noting that this method is traumatic, since rejection of necrosis of the treated surface can cause bleeding. In addition to the appearance of scars, a woman may have other serious complications, which include exacerbation of inflammation, menstrual cycle disorders, bleeding from under the scab. The healing of the cervix after diathermocoagulation occurs only after 1.5-3 months.
Cryodestruction of cervical erosion
The cryodestruction method is based on the destruction of the cylindrical epithelium on the external pharynx of the cervix using nitrous oxide or liquid nitrogen. Compared to the previous method, this is not so painful, does not cause bleeding, does not entail the appearance of scars that cause narrowing of the cervix. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that the first day after the operation, there is abundant discharge and swelling of the cervix. The change of the epithelium on the damaged area occurs after one month.
But this method also has a number of disadvantages. Namely, they primarily include the risk of insufficient freezing of the damaged area both in depth and on its surface. Because of this, all the damaged cells of the cervical epithelium may not be destroyed.
Laserporization of cervical erosion
This method of treatment involves cauterization of the damaged area of the cervix with a laser beam. This operation is performed only on the 5-7 day of the menstrual cycle. It is worth noting that it is not too painful, does not cause scarring of tissues, and also contributes to the effective rejection of necrosis and complete regeneration of the epithelium in a month.
The advantage of the method is also that the doctor can easily control the depth of laser exposure. But, unfortunately, not all medical institutions have special equipment for laser imaging. It is worth noting that this method has some contraindications, which include: inflammation of the genitals, malignant diseases, hemorrhagic diathesis.
Radio wave method for removing cervical erosion
This method is considered one of the most comfortable and effective. It provides for the impact on the affected area of the cervix with radio wave frequency currents. It is worth noting that the radio wave method will accelerate the complete recovery of epithelial tissue and prevent the occurrence of relapses. This procedure takes very little time. In addition, it does not require anesthesia and postoperative treatment.
First of all, this method of treatment is recommended for women who have not given birth, since it does not cause scarring and burns. Unfortunately, this method is inaccessible to many women due to its high price and the lack of necessary medical equipment in many clinics.
Of course, the treatment of cervical erosion is selected individually in each individual case. At the same time, doctors must be especially careful to choose the method of treating erosion in an unborn woman. This is due to the fact that some methods can cause scarring of the cervix and narrowing of its canal, which can further complicate childbirth. That is why in this case it is necessary to select the most atraumatic methods of treatment.
Many women who have had cervical erosion are concerned about how to plan pregnancy after treatment. It is worth noting that the period of abstinence from pregnancy directly depends on the time of healing of the cervix after surgery. Usually 6 to 10 days are enough for this. Of course, the preparation of a treatment program and the choice of a method is also influenced by the presence of a precancerous condition. In this regard, erosion should be treated exclusively in a reliable clinic under the supervision of a qualified and experienced doctor.
pictures of bodybuilders on steroids
References:
https://motionentrance.edu.np/profile/hoesleet3/
what would be the most likely outcome if a young man were using anabolic steroids?
References:
https://www.fentoneagles.com/page8.php