What We Want You to Know About Pelvic Pain

Sure, you’re used to a little pelvic discomfort in the form of cramps around your periods, but you’re now experiencing pelvic pain that isn’t related to your menstrual cycles. And you’re wondering why.

The first thing that the team of gynecology experts here at Bay Area Physicians for Women’s Health wants you to know is that you aren’t alone when it comes to pelvic pain — it affects one in seven women of childbearing age.

Though you might take some comfort in knowing you’re in good company with pelvic pain, it doesn't exactly solve your problem. To do that, you need to figure out what’s causing the pain, and we review some of the more common culprits below.

Pelvic pain — a broad category

We first want to point out that, as women’s health experts, we’re going to keep the focus of our discussion on reproductive issues that can lead to pelvic pain, which only paints part of the overall picture.

Your pelvis region is a reasonably large cavity that houses more than your reproductive organs, such as your urinary tract and the lower part of your digestive tract. So, pelvic pain can come from spasms in your colon or a urinary tract infection.

We do feel, however, that it’s usually best for women to start their investigations in the reproductive area as it accounts for a large share of pelvic pain.

Reproductive health issues and pelvic pain

At our practice, we see a fair number of patients who come in with pelvic pain, and here’s what we tend to find:

Endometriosis

This is a condition that affects 11% of women between the ages of 15 and 49. With endometriosis, endometrial tissues grow outside the uterus and can create painful adhesions.

The pelvic pain associated with endometriosis can flare with your periods, or it might present as a dull and constant ache in your pelvis and/or lower back. You might also feel pain during intercourse, bowel movements, and urination.

Pelvic inflammatory disease

Each year in the United States, about one million women develop pelvic inflammatory disease, which is an infection in the uterus, Fallopian tubes, or ovaries. In most cases, pelvic inflammatory disease is caused by an untreated sexually transmitted infection, namely chlamydia and gonorrhea, that starts in the vagina but travels to other reproductive organs.

When it comes to symptoms, pelvic pain is usually at the top of the list.

Uterine fibroids

Many women develop uterine fibroids, which are mostly benign growths that form in the walls of your uterus. If you have a fibroid that grows large enough or is located in a tricky spot, it can lead to pelvic pain. Even if it doesn't qualify as pain, you might feel some pressure or discomfort in your pelvis due to fibroids.

These three conditions account for more than their fair share of the overall pelvic pain burden, so we’re going to stop here. As we mentioned, there are many other possibilities, so a step toward finding relief from your pelvic pain is to come to see us for an evaluation. Even if we find nothing wrong reproductively, it narrows your list, and you can investigate other areas.

For expert diagnosis and treatment of pelvic pain, please contact our office in Mobile, Alabama, to schedule your appointment.