Violation of the menstrual cycle is a deviation from the normal cycle of menstruation. Every woman faces similar troubles at least once during her life. However, if violations are observed for a long period, there is cause for concern.
The content of the article:
Causes of menstrual cycle disorders
Treatment of menstrual cycle disorders and its recovery
Violation of the menstrual cycle
In order to determine which phenomena to characterize as deviations, you need to familiarize yourself with the normal indicators:
the arrival of the first menstruation — at 12-14 years;
cycle duration — from 21 to 35 days (ideally – 28 days);
the duration of bleeding is from 3 to 7 days;
the volume of blood loss per menstruation is from 50 to 100 ml;
there are no ailments.
From here we can conclude that violations can be:
in the absence of menstruation;
in changing the duration of the cycle;
in changing the characteristics of bleeding;
in the presence of bleeding outside the cycle;
in the problems that accompany the menstrual cycle.
The absence of menstruation for more than six months is called amenorrhea. Such a condition is not dangerous only in a few cases:
in girls before puberty;
in pregnant women;
nursing mothers;
in women after menopause.
The change in the cycle duration can be expressed by the following states:
opsomenorrhea — cycle duration exceeds 35 days;
oligomenorrhea — cycle duration exceeds 40 days;
polymenorrhea — cycle duration is shorter than 21 days;
anisomenorrhea is an irregular menstrual cycle.
Changes in the characteristics of bleeding are caused by conditions such as:
hypomenorrhea — bleeding stops after two days;
hypermenorrhea — bleeding lasts longer than seven days;
menorrhagia is an increase in blood loss.
Bleeding outside the menstrual cycle is called metrorrhagia. They are usually irregular and have different intensity. Such a phenomenon is always caused by some kind of disease, since normal menstruation is always caused by the excretion of particles of the uterine mucosa (endometrium). It, in turn, occurs with a certain regularity.
In addition, women may face such inconveniences as:
premenstrual syndrome is a general physical and mental malaise on the eve of menstruation;
dysmenorrhea — pain in the lower abdomen on the eve and in the first days of menstruation;
intromenstrual syndrome — abdominal pain and small bleeding during ovulation.
Separately, it is worth noting menstrual cycle disorders associated with egg maturation:
anovulatory cycle — absence of ovulation;
unexploded follicle syndrome — the follicle regresses or turns into a cyst;
the syndrome of an unshed egg — the follicle ruptured, but the egg did not come out;
short follicular phase — less than 12 days;
short luteal phase — less than 10 days;
long follicular phase — more than 16 days;
long luteal phase — more than 15 days.
Recall that the follicular phase lasts 12-14 days from the beginning of menstruation to ovulation, and the luteal phase lasts 14 days after ovulation. Failures in the follicular phase are fraught with incomplete egg maturation. With a deviation in the luteal phase, the transformation of the follicle into the yellow body fails, the level of progesterone secretion decreases. As a result, the uterine mucosa is unprepared for embryo implantation.
Each of these pathologies has its own cause of development. Each of them is not a disease in itself, but indicates a serious malfunction in the body.
Causes of menstrual cycle disorders
In a healthy girl, the first menstruation occurs at the age of 12-14 years. The cycle does not stabilize immediately: nature takes some time to debug this natural process of the female body. During the first year, a girl should have at least eight cycles. After that, the cycle is usually set.
Most often, menstrual cycle disorders are caused by hormonal failures. At the same time, it is not necessary that the problem lies precisely in the ovaries: the reason may lie in a change in the functions of the thyroid gland or adrenal glands. According to the World Health Organization, the main hormonal factors of menstrual cycle disorders are:
hypothalamic-pituitary insufficiency or dysfunction;
inflammatory process or damage to the hypothalamic-pituitary region;
tumors of the pituitary gland or hypothalamus;
ovarian insufficiency;
hyperprolactinemia;
uterine defects.
Inflammatory diseases occurring in the pelvic organs can also bring down the menstrual cycle. After the elimination of the causative agent, the menstrual cycle returns to normal. The same applies to sexually transmitted infections.
Diseases such as chickenpox or rubella have a negative effect on the laying of follicles in the ovary. The consequences of this can manifest themselves months or even years after recovery.
Menstrual cycle disorder can indicate such serious diseases as:
endometriosis;
uterine fibroids;
polyps of the endometrium or cervix;
<adenomyosis;
malignant tumors in the pelvic organs.
Finally, the usual course of menstruation can provoke unfavorable conditions:
climate change;
physical fatigue;
psychological shock;
a grueling diet;
alcohol abuse;
prolonged sexual abstinence;
taking certain medications.
We must not forget that menstrual disorders can be inherited.
Treatment of menstrual cycle disorders and its recovery
The fact that menstrual cycle disorder requires treatment is beyond doubt, since this pathology entails a lot of risks:
the impossibility of conception;
miscarriage of pregnancy;
the development of anemia;
the appearance of neoplasms in the uterus of various nature;
hormonal disorders that provoke the development of other diseases.
The treatment regimen will depend on which factor provoked the cycle disorder. A versatile diagnosis will help to identify it, including:
interview of the patient on the topic of her lifestyle, past illnesses and heredity;
gynecological examination, including a smear on the flora and analysis for sexually transmitted infections;
Ultrasound of the pelvic organs and thyroid gland;
hormonal screening, which will reveal the content of sex hormones in the blood;
hysterosalpingography, which allows to assess the internal state of the uterus;
X-ray of the head (in particular, the Turkish saddle), which will determine hypothalamic-pituitary abnormalities.
Depending on the picture of the patient’s condition, the doctor may advise her on the following treatment methods:
lifestyle adjustments;
hormone therapy;
physical therapy;
phytotherapy;
therapy with uterotonics that reduce blood loss;
curettage of the uterus;
surgical methods.
Timely access to a doctor gives a chance for a complete restoration of the menstrual cycle and, as a result, victory over the diseases that provoked the violation. When such a condition occurs, a woman does not lose her chances of pregnancy. Drug stimulation of ovulation, which can be carried out immediately after treatment, will achieve the desired.
