Lower Abdominal Pain

Lower abdominal pain can be a symptom of various different pelvic organ dysfunction. Many doctors misdiagnose women who complain of abdominal pain since the symptom can mimic other disorders having to do with the bowels, digestive tract, and stomach. This misdiagnosis is common.

Lower Abdominal Pain can be caused by a number of conditions in the pelvic cavity such as fibroid tumors, ovarian cysts and endometriosis. The pain usually occurs when a lesion comes in contact with another organ causing inflammation. Many women who complain of lower abdominal pain are diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome or acid reflux disease. This is because endometrial lesions can attach to the intestine causing abdominal pain.

Diagnosing Lower Abdominal Pain

The most common causes of abdominal pain in reproductive women include Fibroid tumors,Endometriosis, Ovarian cysts, Irritable Bowel syndrome and interstitial Cystitis.Women who experience chronic abdominal pain could be suffering from endometriosis. Endometriosis is often misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome. This is because the lesions caused by endometriosis often involve the intestine causing extreme pain.

Endometriosis is a condition in which tissue which normally is found inside the uterus begins to grow in areas outside of the uterus. Often times endometrial tissue is extruded out the fallopian tubes during menstruation and attaches to the back of the uterus. This tissue responds to hormonal stimulation and during menstruation weeps and bleeds and causes the severe Abdominal Pain that many women with endometriosis experience.

Most women with endometriosis are told that the only way to get rid of their abdominal pain and pelvic pain is to become pregnant or have a hysterectomy. Unfortunately neither of these solutions are acceptable to many women. Many women experience infertility and for most others the pain returns after pregnancy. Studies also show that almost one quarter of women who undergo hysterectomy for pain relief continue to experience pain after hysterectomy. Endometriosis seems to be an increasingly common condition among women in the United States.

Endometrial tissue is the tissue that grows on the inside of the uterus and forms the lining of the uterus. If a woman does not become pregnant, the endometrial lining is shed each month during her period. Endometriosis is endometrial tissue growing in other areas of the uterus and sometimes outside of the uterus.

Endometrial tissue can grow in or on the ovaries, the sidewalls of the pelvis and the bowels. This extra tissue cannot be shed during a woman's period. Endometrial lesions inflame various organs in and around the pelvic cavity causing pelvic pain and abnormal bleeding.