Pelvic Inflammatory

What is pelvic inflammatory disease? Pelvic Inflammatory Disease is actually a series of different diseases that affect only women. Signs of PID are the infection of the uterus, fallopian tubes, and other areas of a woman's upper genital tract. One of the best known   PID symptoms is inflammation, causing pain, swelling, fever, and potential scarring.   A woman suffering from PID will possibly experience changes in the anatomy of her genital tract which increases the future risk of ectopic pregnancies (which occurs when an embryo grow outside of the uterus leading to shock and death of the mother if not diagnosed) or could cause infertility. Some women can lose the ability to become pregnant after just one episode of PID.  Are Some Women More at Risk of Contacting PID than Other Women? PID rates are higher among sexually active adolescent women. Women with multiple sex partners or women who have made use of an IUD (intrauterine device for birth control) are also more at risk to develop this disease. Douching and having suffered from a prior episode of PID will increase the risk of the disease developing again. Women who have suffered from PID before will need their doctor to explain PID control. Complications Arising Due to PID Without fast and suitable treatment, PID could cause damage to the female reproductive organs. Examples of complications are: Infections Caused by bacteria, infections can attack the fallopian tubes, causing normal tissue to turn into scar tissue. This tissue could then block the movement of eggs into the uterus. If the fallopian tubes are totally blocked by scar tissue, the sperm cannot fertilize eggs, and the woman becomes infertile.  Ectopic Pregnancy A blocked or damaged fallopian tube can cause fertilized eggs to stick in the fallopian tube. If this fertilized egg grows in the tube as if it were in the uterus, an ectopic pregnancy occurs. This can potentially rupture the fallopian tube causing severe pain, internal bleeding, or even death.  Pain Scarring in the fallopian tubes can cause chronic pelvic pain. Symptoms of PID  Because of symptoms that can be hard to recognize PID often goes unrecognized by women and their doctors. The effects of pelvic inflammatory disease can be very painful and do require treatment. If you recognise any of the following symptoms it is a good idea to contact your doctor to explain your concerns: Lower abdominal pain or pain in or around the pelvis area. Fever combined with an unusual vaginal discharge. Low back pains. Painful urination. Irregular menstrual bleeding. Causes of PID PID can happen when bacteria reach a woman's vagina or cervix (opening to the uterus) into her reproductive organs. There can be many causes of PID but the most common ones are: Women with gonorrhoea could develop symptomatic PID. Sexually active women in their childbearing years are more at risk, and women aged under 25 are more likely to develop PID than women who are older than 25.  The more sex partners a woman has, the greater her risk of developing PID will become. Women who use a vaginal douche may have a higher risk of developing PID compared to those who do not use a vaginal douche, because this procedure changes the organisms inside the vagina.