Adenomyosis is uterine thickening that occurs when endometrial
tissue, which normally lines the uterus, moves into the outer muscular
walls of the uterus.
Symptoms of Adenomyosis:
- Heavy or prolonged menstrual bleeding
- In some women, adenomyosis is "silent" — causing no signs or symptoms — or only mildly uncomfortable. But other women with adenomyosis may experience
- Severe cramping or sharp, knife-like pelvic pain during menstruation (dysmenorrhea)
- Menstrual cramps that last throughout your period and worsen as you get older
- Dyspareunia
- Bleeding between periods -intermenstrual bleeding
- Passing blood clots during your period
- Uterus may increase to double or triple its normal size, lower abdomen seems bigger or feels tender.
Causes of Adenomyosis
The cause of adenomyosis isn't known. Expert theories about a possible cause include:
Invasive tissue growth. Some experts believe that adenomyosis results
from the direct invasion of endometrial cells from the surface of the
uterus into the muscle that forms the uterine walls. Uterine incisions
made during an operation such as a cesarean section (C-section) promotes
the direct invasion of the endometrial cells into the walls of the
uterus.
Developmental origins. Other experts speculate that adenomyosis
originates within the uterine muscle from endometrial tissue deposited
there when the uterus was first forming in the female fetus.
Uterine inflammation related to childbirth. Still another theory
suggests a link between adenomyosis and childbirth. An inflammation of
the uterine lining during the postpartum period might cause a break in
the normal boundary of the cells that line the uterus.
Regardless
of how adenomyosis develops, its growth depends on the circulating
estrogen in a woman's body. When estrogen production decreases at
menopause, adenomyosis goes away.
