Introduction to an enlarged uterus
When a woman gets older there are many thing that occur to her body and there arises a possibility of certain disorders of the reproduction system and its organs.
One such problem is an enlarged uterus, which can occur to a woman either before or after menopause, so there is no strict age in which it can occur.
This enlargement of the uterus usually leads to an increase in the size of the abdomen that is visible on the outside as well.
However, sometimes there is no visible enlargement, but the woman can feel that something is wrong from the inside.
There are a number of different factors that can lead to an increase in the size of the uterus.
Causes
One cause is the presence of fibroid, more specifically, uterine fibroids.
It has been show in studies that this is a common occurrence, since about 45 % of all women will have fibroids in their uteruses at some time or another.
Fibroids are non-cancerous growths and they usually occur during the time that a women is still able to conceive a child.
They can occur both on the inside and outside of the uterine wall and they can appear either as single tumors or as a group of growths.
The size can also vary from very small, like a pea, to very large, the size of a melon even.
When this occurs, the symptoms of the condition include a heavy menstrual cycle, pain during sex, constant urges to urinate, constipation, pain in the abdomen and in most cases, an enlarged uterus.
These tumors can be removed surgically from the uterus.
Another possible cause is cancer of the endometrium. Women who are most at risk for this cancer are those who are over the age of 45, on hormone replacement therapy, are having breast cancer treatment, or are obese.
Symptoms include painful sexual intercourse, difficulty urinating, heavy bleeding in between menstrual cycles or even after menopause.
Ovarian cysts can also cause the uterus to become enlarged.
Ovarian cysts are pockets or sacs that are filled with fluid and located on the ovaries.
This is also a very common problem for many women, though they are usually benign. However, they can cause a great deal of discomfort.
Another possible cause of an enlarged uterus is when the tissue that lines the uterus begins growing within the uterine muscular wall, which is referred to as adenomyosis.
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