Such a condition as anovulation is considered one of the most common causes of infertility. The disease is characterized by failures in the maturation of the egg and its release from the follicle, thereby provoking infertility.
Definition
Before you figure out what anovulation is in women, you need to know that ovulation includes two cycles:
- A follicle is formed in the ovary - this is a vesicle that has a membrane shell, inside which the egg cell matures. It is formed due to the follicle-stimulating hormone. When the egg matures, estrogen is produced. When its concentration becomes limiting, the follicle bursts, and the egg enters the fallopian tubes. During the day, she has the opportunity to fertilize, and after that, she dies.
- In the second phase, the excess elements of the ovaries and uterus are rejected. At the time of ovulation, all organs of the reproductive system are preparing for conception, and the endometrium begins to grow. Under the influence of hormones, all these particles are prepared for separation andexcreted together with the endometrium and the dead egg.
If both cycles pass during ovulation, then everything is in order. In a situation where failures occur in the first phase, that is, the egg does not mature or it cannot leave the ovary, then we can talk about anovulation.
Views
The concept of anovulation, and what kind of condition of the female body we have already analyzed, but you need to know that the disease can be divided into two forms.
- Physiological - this problem is primarily associated with the female reproductive system. It should be noted that the state of anovulation is characteristic of pregnancy, lactation and the postpartum period. And also here can be attributed the lack of ovulation due to age-related changes. This condition is characteristic of girls during menopause and the fair sex, whose body is not yet fully formed. When a woman is of reproductive age (15-48 years) and she is completely he althy, the disease can also occur. Everyone knows that anovulation is a disruption in the activity of the female body, so stress and abrupt moves, in which the climate changes, can also provoke an illness. Basically, therapy in this case is not required, since over time the activity of the ovaries is getting better.
- Pathological anovulation is otherwise called chronic and develops after the transfer of certain diseases. She is considered the most dangerous. Chronic anovulation is treated exclusively by a gynecologist, since pathology very often provokes infertility.
Reasons
The menstrual cycle is a joint and complex work of different elements of the body - the uterus, ovaries, endocrine and central nervous systems. When deviations begin at any of the stages, this affects the entire cycle. Anovulation - what is it? In simple words, these are various failures in the body that have affected the reproductive system.
The most common causes of illness are the following diseases:
- Diseases of the hypothalamus and pituitary gland - these hormonal glands are one of the main ones in the body. Their main product is prolactin. Its presence affects both the possibility of conception and the course of the entire pregnancy. In the case of severe exhaustion of the female body, when it is constantly subjected to stress, the functionality of the glands is disturbed. Due to the active production of prolactin, a prolactinoma (benign neoplasm) begins to form. It greatly limits the functionality of the ovaries.
- Ovarian exhaustion - this condition is formed at the time of excessive production of hormones, due to which their performance is interrupted. As a result, anovulation is diagnosed, but this condition is most often temporary.
- Excess weight - in case of metabolic disorders, of course, the hormonal background goes astray, and as you know, any failures can provoke such an ailment.
- Polycystic is the most common cause. Another name for this pathology sounds like multifollicular ovaries. Anovulation in this case begins due to increased production of hormones, withwhich hardens the ovarian membrane, as a result, the egg cannot be released.
- Pathologies of the thyroid gland - hormonal disruptions are also the cause here.
- Less commonly, but it still happens that anovulation is caused by ailments with the kidneys and adrenal glands. They secrete few hormones that affect the state of the reproductive system, but the general hormonal state can fail the body.
Signs and symptoms of anovulation
What kind of condition is already clear, now you need to understand the signs of this disease in order to turn to the doctor for help in time:
- Absence of menstruation - a long absence of ovulation affects, in general, the entire cycle and further leads to the fact that menstruation completely disappears.
- Irregular cycle - manifested by an increase in days between periods.
- Standard basal temperature - before the onset of ovulation, it drops by half a degree, while in the initial period of the cycle its value fluctuates within 37 degrees. When a woman has an anovulatory phase, her basal body temperature remains unchanged.
- Uniformity of vaginal discharge - this condition is characterized by increased discharge, as well as their increased density.
Indirect signs of anovulation include chest pain, acne, hair loss on the head, the appearance of fluff on the arms, face, and increased testosterone levels. Prolonged fruitless attempts to conceive and a constant level of progesterone also indicatefor disease.
Can I have my period
The absence or presence of menstruation in this condition depends on the thickness of the endometrium, and anovulation just gives rise to its thickening. When conception does not occur, then this layer should be excreted along with menstruation, regardless of whether the egg was released at the same time.
When sick, the discharge will be quite scarce, and it will last from 2-4 days, or maybe less.
Sometimes the discharge is still strong, and nothing indicates an abnormal course of the menstrual cycle. In this case, only unsuccessful attempts to conceive a baby can determine the disease.
Diagnosis
Many women are interested in: "What is anovulation?". In simple words, this is a hormonal failure that causes many problems.
To diagnose this condition, the doctor prescribes a huge number of clinical examinations. Such an approach helps not only to correctly diagnose, but also to discard all similar ailments. The following options are most often used for diagnosing.
- Rapid test is an auxiliary diagnostic method that women often use before going to the doctor. Thanks to the tests, it is possible to measure the level of luteinizing hormone, which reaches a very high value at the time of the release of the egg, and then decreases. This method is not always reliable, as there are diseases in which this hormone is constantly elevated.
- Basal temperature measurement - measured in the morning atrectum upon waking. To do this, you need to keep a personal ovulation schedule. The method is not very reliable, since many other factors affect the temperature.
- Ultrasound (ultrasound examination) of the ovaries is the most reliable diagnostic method. With the help of the procedure, you can determine the number of follicles, their size, as well as the condition of the uterus and ovaries.
- Detection of hormone levels - the doctor prescribes an analysis for the presence of prolactin in the blood, as well as luteinizing and follicle-stimulating hormones.
- Craniography - to check the pituitary gland, an x-ray of the bones of the skull is required. This helps determine if the presence of anovulation is due to an adnexal tumor.
Anovulation treatment
What kind of disease is already clear, and we also found out that it arises as a result of the formation of other pathologies, therefore, first of all, doctors deal with the elimination of the primary ailment that caused such a condition. Of course, each cause will have its own medical treatment.
The main place in therapy is the normalization of hormonal levels. This is very true for girls who still want to have a baby. In other cases, the doctor simply corrects the menstrual cycle so that it returns to normal. This method is usually accompanied by a parallel elimination of problematic points.
Very often being overweight causes anovulation. What to do in this case, each doctor will tell you, first of all, with this symptom, weight correction is required. All therapywill be ineffective if the body mass index is too high. After getting rid of extra pounds, the hormonal background often normalizes on its own, reproductive ability is restored, and overall well-being improves.
Medications are required in therapy. The most commonly used are follicle-stimulating hormone and antiestrogen. They are required to start the process of egg maturation. These methods do not always show a positive result, so then ovarian resection is indicated. Sometimes IVF (in vitro fertilization) is recommended.
Folk Therapy
Traditional treatment can be supplemented with folk medicine. It can only be auxiliary to relieve tension and stress. To do this, you need to take 30 grams of sage and pour 250 ml of boiling water over it. Wait until the infusion cools down and drink 1 tbsp. l. 4 times a day.
Grass is popular - upland uterus. To prepare a decoction, 60 grams of the plant is taken and 500 ml of boiling water is poured. It is infused for 12 hours, and then it is drunk 2 times a day for half a glass.
Stimulation
If the above means do not help, then often a method such as stimulation is used to form an egg. For this, the medicines "Dydrogesterone", "Klostilbegit", "Puregon", and "Letrozole" are used. They are made on the basis of female hormones, but the use of such drugs without treating the underlying disease will not bring a positive result.
Effects of stimulation
Ovulation StimulationIt is considered not a very safe procedure, therefore it is carried out under the close and constant supervision of a doctor. A serious consequence can be called hyperstimulation. This is a condition in which, due to medication, functional cysts appear on the patient's ovaries, which can cause severe bleeding and other complications.
Is it possible to get pregnant with anovulation without treatment
Pregnancy with anovulation, of course, is impossible, because without the presence of an egg in the uterus or fallopian tube, a child cannot be born. In cases where surgical or conservative methods did not lead to the desired ovulation, it is possible to perform IVF using a donor oocyte. Therapy is always required, because in modern medicine there are many ways in which a woman can become a mother even with anovulation.
After Pregnancy
Special attention is required to be given to this pathological condition in the postpartum period. When a woman is not breastfeeding, it is normal for her first period to start coming a few months after birth. Sometimes, the ovulatory period returns to normal by the second or third period.
In the case of breastfeeding, the first menstruation should be expected no earlier than 5 months after birth. The reason for this is the hormone prolactin, which is just responsible for the production of breast milk, it also causes the production of the hormone responsible for ovulation.
Therefore, menstruation without ovulation during lactation is absolutely notare cause for concern. Depending on many factors, the first menstruation during breastfeeding can occur after a year and a half if the woman continues to feed the baby. And there are also cases that menstruation is restored immediately after the end of lactation. Because prolactin stops being produced in high doses.
Prevention
Some women do not follow their cycle at all and go to the doctor only in the most severe cases. To maintain he alth, it is imperative to control the diet and diet, constantly visit not only a gynecologist, but also a therapist, and in case of problems with hormones, an endocrinologist.
For preventive purposes, it is recommended to keep a calendar of the menstrual cycle and, in the presence of various deviations, seek the advice of a specialist.
