All About Menstrual Cramps

Believe it or not, regular exercise can help prevent and improve menstrual cramps. It is also very important to have a balanced diet and adequate rest.

Menstrual periods can be light and easy for some women, but for others, can be heavy and / or be accompanied by painful cramps. Colic usually affect many women during their reproductive years, most of the time, these cramps can become so intense that you have to put them a remedy. In this article you will find all about menstrual cramps, how they originate, how to remedy them, etc.

What are menstrual cramps?

Menstrual cramps are pains in areas belly and pelvis which are experienced by a woman as a result of her menstrual period. Menstrual cramps are not the same as the discomfort felt during the premenstrual syndrome (PMS), although the symptoms of both disorders can sometimes be experienced as a continuous process. Many women suffer from both PMS and menstrual cramps.

Menstrual cramps can range from mild to very serious. Mild menstrual cramps may be barely noticeable and of short duration that sometimes feels like a feeling of heaviness in the belly. Severe menstrual cramps can be so painful that interfere with the normal activities of a woman for several days.

How common are menstrual cramps?

Menstrual cramps of some degree affecting more than an estimated 50% of women and including up to 15% describe their menstrual pain as severe. In surveys among adolescents it shows that over 90% of girls have menstrual cramps.

What is dysmenorrhea?

The medical term for menstrual cramps is dysmenorrhea. There are two types of dysmenorrhea, primary and secondary.

In primary dysmenorrhea, there is no underlying gynecologic problem causing pain. This type of colic can start within six months to a year following menarche (the onset of menses), the moment when a girl starts having periods.

Menstrual cramps usually do not begin until ovulatory menstrual cycles occur (when an egg is released from the ovaries), and the actual menstrual bleeding usually begins before the onset of ovulation. Therefore, a teenager can not experience dysmenorrhea until months or years after the onset of menstruation.

In secondary dysmenorrhea, some underlying abnormal condition (usually in the reproductive system of women) contributes to menstrual pain. Secondary dysmenorrhea may be evident at menarche, but more often, the condition develops later.

What causes menstrual cramps?

Each month, the lining of the uterus (the endometrium) is prepared for a possible pregnancy. After ovulation, when the egg is not fertilized by a sperm, it will not lead to pregnancy and the actual lining of the uterus is no longer necessary. Women estrogen and progesterone levels decline and hormone fall into the uterine lining swells and eventually poured menstrual flow and replaced by a new lining in the next monthly cycle.

When the old lining of the uterus begins to break down, molecular compounds called prostaglandins are released. These compounds cause the muscles of the uterus to contract. When the uterine muscles that constrict blood flow (vasoconstriction) to constrict endometrium, this contraction blocks delivery of oxygen to tissues of the endometrium, in turn, decomposes and dies. After the death of this tissue, uterine contractions literally squeeze the old endometrial tissue through the cervix and out of the body through the vagina.

Other substances known as leukotrienes, which are chemicals that play a role in the inflammatory response, are also high at this time and may be related to the development of menstrual cramps.

Why are some cramps so painful?

Menstrual cramps are caused by uterine contractions that occur in response to prostaglandins and other chemicals. The cramping sensation is intensified when clots or pieces of bloody tissue from the lining of the uterus pass through the cervix, especially if the woman cervical canal is narrow.

The difference between menstrual pains are more painful and those who are less painful may be related to prostaglandin levels in women. Women with high menstrual cramps have elevated levels of prostaglandins in the endometrium (lining of the uterus) compared with women who do not experience cramps. Menstrual cramps are very similar to those that a woman experiences when she is given prostaglandin as a medication to induce labor.

You can measure menstrual cramps?

Yes. Menstrual cramps can be demonstrated scientifically by measuring the pressure inside the uterus and the number and frequency of uterine contractions. During a normal menstrual period, the average woman has contractions low pressure (50-80 mm Hg), lasting 15 to 30 seconds with a frequency of 1-4 contractions per 10 minutes. When a woman has menstrual cramps, contractions are of a higher pressure (which can exceed 400 mm Hg), lasting more than 90 seconds and often occur in less than 15 seconds apart.

What other factors influence menstrual cramps?

As mentioned above, an unusually narrow cervical canal tends to increase menstrual cramps. Another anatomical factor that is believed to contribute to menstrual cramps is a backward tilt of the uterus (retroversion of the uterus). Lack of exercise is also recognized that contributes to painful menstrual cramps. It was long thought that psychological factors also play a role. For example, it is widely accepted that emotional stress can increase the discomfort of menstrual cramps.

What are the symptoms of menstrual cramps?

Menstrual cramps are pains that originate in the lower abdomen and pelvis. The discomfort may spread to the back or legs. Cramps can be a very strong or mild pain and can be periodic or continuous.

Menstrual cramps usually begin shortly before menstruation, the peak is within 24 hours after the onset of bleeding and disappear again after a day or two.

Menstrual cramps may be accompanied by headache and / or nausea, which can lead, albeit infrequently, even vomiting. Menstrual cramps may be accompanied by constipation or diarrhea due to prostaglandins that cause the smooth muscles contract they are both in utero and intestinal tract. Some women experience a need to urinate more frequently.

How are menstrual cramps diagnosed?

The diagnosis of menstrual cramps usually done by women and reflects their own individual perception of pain. Once a woman has experienced menstrual cramps, usually with onset in adolescence of her menstrual flow (menses), he becomes aware of the typical symptoms. If there are other medical conditions that contribute to menstrual cramps (secondary dysmenorrhea), the doctor may suggest diagnostic tests including studies.

What is the treatment for common menstrual cramps (primary dysmenorrhea)?

Every woman has to find a treatment that works for her. There are a number of possible remedies for menstrual cramps. Current recommendations are not only adequate rest and sleep, but also regular exercise (especially walking). Some women find that abdominal massage, yoga or orgasmic sexual activity can bring relief. A heating pad applied to the abdominal area may relieve pain and congestion and reduce symptoms.

A number of counter medications can help control pain and prevent menstrual cramps themselves. For mild cramps, aspirin or paracetamol or acetaminophen plus a diuretic may be sufficient. However, aspirin has a limited effect in reducing prostaglandin production and is useful only for less painful cramping.

The main agents for the treatment of moderate menstrual cramps are the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which reduce prostaglandin production and decrease its effects. The nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs which do not require a prescription are: Ibuprofen, Naproxen and Ketoprofen sodium.

The woman should start taking one of these medications before her pain becomes difficult to control. This could mean starting medication 1 to 2 days before menstruation and continue taking the medication 1-2 days in the period. The best results are obtained by taking one of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on a scheduled basis and not wait for the pain begins. Anti-inflammatory nonsteroidal drugs prescription for the treatment of menstrual cramps are meclofenamate and mefenamic acid.

What if the cramps are very serious?

If menstrual cramps women are too serious to be managed by these strategies, the doctor may prescribe low-dose birth control pills (oral contraceptives) containing estrogen and progestin in a regular or extended cycle. This approach can prevent ovulation (the monthly release of an egg) and reduce the production of prostaglandins which in turn, reduces the severity of cramps and causes a slight menstrual flow.

The use of an IUD that releases small amounts of progestin levonorgestrel directly into the uterine cavity, has been associated with a 50 percent reduction in the prevalence of menstrual cramps. In contrast, IUDs do not contain hormones, such as those containing copper, they may worsen menstrual cramps.

Are there surgical solutions?

In the past, many women with menstrual pain had a practice known as dilation and curettage to remove part of the lining of the uterus operation. This procedure is also sometimes used as a diagnostic measure to detect cancer or pre-cancerous conditions of the uterine lining. Some women even resorted to the ultimate solution for menstrual problems with having a hysterectomy, surgery that removes the entire uterus.

Today, when a woman has an abnormally heavy dysmenorrhea and painful uterine bleeding, doctors may recommend endometrial ablation, a procedure in which the lining of the uterus is burned or is vaporized by a device that generates heat.

What is the treatment of secondary dysmenorrhea?

The treatment of secondary dysmenorrhea depends on its cause.

There are a number of underlying conditions that can contribute to pain including:

• Endometriosis (cells of the uterine wall located in other areas of the body); uterine fibroids (noncancerous uterine growths that respond to estrogen levels).
• Adenomyosis (a benign condition in which the cells lining the inner uterus invade the muscle wall, the myometrium)
• Pelvic inflammatory disease
• The fibrous adhesions (abnormal accessories between organs), or use of an intrauterine device (IUD) for contraception.

All these conditions must first be diagnosed by a doctor who will then recommend the optimal treatment. If a woman begins to experience changes in their menstrual cramps, as well as its severity, time or place, you should consult your doctor, especially if the changes are sudden onset.

What is the long-term outlook (prognosis) for menstrual cramps?

In general, women menstrual cramps do not worsen during their lifetime. In fact, menstrual cramps of primary dysmenorrhea usually diminish with age and after pregnancy.

When secondary dysmenorrhea with an underlying condition contributing to the pain, the prognosis depends on the successful treatment of the underlying condition.

Because women have learned more about your body and how to keep it in optimal health, menstrual cramps have become smaller.