Practicing gynecologists quite often diagnose "genital prolapse". Uterine prolapse, uterine prolapse, vaginal prolapse are all names for the same disease. Starting with small, yet invisible changes, it progresses and can lead to severe, sometimes irreversible consequences.
Silenced disease
According to statistics, every second woman in the menopause and about 30% of the young who give birth suffer from such a disease as uterine prolapse. What to do in these cases, any gynecologist can tell. Faced with unusual sensations in the pelvic area, repeated repeatedly, or immediately with a part of the uterus or vagina falling out of the perineum, you should not postpone visiting the gynecologist for later. You can't miss even one day!
Unfortunately, the problem of the disease is complicated by the modern mentality, the unwillingness to admit to relatives and, first of all, to oneself, that not everything is in order. For some reason, many believe that they can handle it themselves, when the prolapse of the uterus has just begun. They don't know what to do, but they don't want to go to the doctor.
How does the disease develop?Risk groups
The initially he althy uterus is located in the center of the small pelvis and is held by ligaments that attach it to the sacrum and pelvic bones, and from below it is supported by the muscular apparatus of the perineum.
During pregnancy, an inevitable increase in the uterus occurs, and if labor activity proceeds normally, after a while (individual process) all organs return to their place.
In case of rapid childbirth, with incorrect (rough) stimulation, with significant ruptures of the genital tract, the ligaments can overstretch or tear. This almost always results in uterine prolapse. What should a young woman do in this case? Do not have sex and refuse to carry the baby in your arms?
- In the case of uncontrolled heavy physical exertion (lifting weights in the first place), the muscles that support the internal organs can overstrain.
- Women with bronchial asthma or other severe lung diseases are also at risk: coughing too much strains the pelvic muscles.
- With significant obesity or the presence of tumors (myomas), it must be assumed that genital prolapse may progress in patients.
- When the level of estrogen changes (before menopause and during menopause), tissue elasticity is lost, and, naturally, ligaments can stretch.
- When a woman is constantly tormented by constipation, and already has hemorrhoids (when instead of taking laxatives during bowel movements, internal organs are squeezed out with great pressure), female diseases do notavoid.
Representatives of all groups should urgently begin treatment for uterine prolapse. The prolapse of the vaginal walls as a concomitant disease with the progression of prolapse also requires an urgent solution.
Stages of genital prolapse
Depending on the symptoms, different treatment is prescribed: either conservative (gymnastics, massage) or surgery (surgery and even removal of the uterus).
• The first stage is characterized by an altered position of the uterus, when the cervix is already in the vagina, but has not yet gone into the genital gap and beyond.
• In the second stage, part of the uterus is outside the genital gap.
• The third stage is the hardest. Prolapse of the genitals progresses to complete prolapse of the uterus from the genital gap.
Signs of genital prolapse
While there are no visible manifestations of prolapse, a woman should be concerned about the following negative points:
- discharge for pain and irritation in the vagina;
- aching pain radiating to the groin, to the lumbar region;
- feeling of constant heaviness in the vaginal area;
- discomfort in the perineum when standing up or sitting for a long time, turning into pain;
- feeling pain during intercourse;
- episodic appearance of the cervix from the perineum;
- urinary incontinence during emotional (laughter) and physical (cough) stress;
- urinary retention, difficulty and low flow.
Depending on the indications, conservative treatment is offered at the first stage of the disease: Kegel exercises,massage, estrogen treatment and in addition herbal medicine.
At the second and third stages, a woman herself can diagnose "uterine prolapse". What to do? Treatment, surgery, removal? Can modern medicine offer something in these cases?
Complex of physical exercises for genital prolapse
The gynecologist, when contacting and after the examination, issues recommendations on what to do if uterine prolapse has begun. Genital prolapse, even in the initial stages, is not completely cured; without treatment, it can only progress. Conservative techniques can stop it, and at the second stage facilitate surgery.
If a woman has already noticed symptoms such as a change in the pressure of urine, especially her incontinence, or she began to visit episodic pulling back pain, even before going to the gynecologist, you can do special exercises. Some of them can even be done at work or in transport.
1. It is necessary to compress the knees strongly enough to feel the tension in the muscles. Sometimes it is advised to insert a fist between the knees. Do this up to ten times.
2. Sitting, tighten the muscles of the pelvis so as to lift up the perineum. Do up to ten times.
3. Rotate your legs while lying on your back for up to five minutes, imitating cycling. The subtlety of this exercise is not to strain the press, but to load the thigh muscles more.
4. Lying on your side, put your right foot back behind your left, which you raise up as high as possible without bending it. Exercise to dotwenty to thirty times on each leg.
Do exercises (especially the first two) as often as possible. The usual practice is up to ten times a day.
Gymnastic exercises give a positive result, which manifests itself from the first twenty days, sometimes you need to do more than two months (then it will become a habit) up to a year.
Prolapse of the cervix. What to do, how to do without surgery? Conservative treatment
• Electrical stimulation for the muscles of the perineum and pelvic floor is recognized as one of the modern promising methods.
• Some patients are asked to work with vaginal trainers (weights of various weights) and need to be kept in the vagina for a long time.
• Phytotherapy is considered the most sparing method. The group of medicinal plants that help relieve pain and regulate the menstrual cycle is quite large: lemon balm, dope, gentian, pine nuts (needles), echinacea, evening primrose, dandelion, lily root. The herbal complex for oral administration is prepared on the basis of alcohol tinctures and water decoctions. Warm herbal baths are also beneficial.
• The attending physician may suggest treatment by orthopedic correction - this is the wearing of special supporting rings - pessaries. Putting on technique, taking off time, wearing period - everything is determined only by the observing gynecologist.
• In some cases, a bandage is prescribed to support the organs in the desired position.
• Gynecologicalmassage with estrogen-based creams can be used as part of hormone replacement therapy or as a stand-alone procedure.
What to do with uterine prolapse: surgery
The natural fear of surgery makes any person delay the moment of coming to the doctor. When conservative methods have not yielded results, and cervical prolapse is already progressing, what should patients do in such a situation? Surgery chosen by the attending physician is inevitable.
Today, gynecologists have developed many types of surgical treatment to eliminate anatomical deviations in the position of the uterus with the correction of adjacent organs, such as the bladder and intestines.
As a result of the operation, the structure of the pelvic floor is recreated, all organs are correctly positioned, sufficient elasticity of the vagina is achieved at the required length.
Each operation includes a basic one (fixation of the walls of the vagina - vaginopexy) and is complemented by the correction of existing disorders (urethropexy for urinary incontinence, sphincteroplasty for weakness of the pelvic muscles).
Today, more than fifty types of operations are known for such a diagnosis as uterine prolapse. What to do in each case (operation and method) - the surgeon chooses.
Why is uterine prolapse dangerous?
Most women, especially in menopause, do not understand the dangers of the diagnosis, increasingsigns of the disease do not bother them at all. Having brought the situation to a critical point, in fear they resort to a gynecologist with the question: “How to pick up a prolapsed uterus?”
Genital prolapse is characterized by omission of organs, compression of the organs themselves and important neurovascular bundles occurs - all this is extremely dangerous. Both the bladder and the intestines, and the anterior part of the rectum descend into the resulting hernia.
As the prolapse progresses, it becomes much more difficult to restore the normal anatomy of the organs, and the second and third stages require urgent surgical intervention. Otherwise, changes in the functioning of the urinary organs and intestines can pose a threat not only to he alth, but also to life.
