Adenomyosis

Adenomyosis occurs when endometrial tissue lining the uterus, exists within and grows into the muscular wall of the uterus. The displaced endometrial tissue continues to act as it normally would, i.e. thickening, breaking down and bleeding during each menstrual cycle. Adenomyosis can cause menstrual cramps, lower abdominal pressure, and bloating before menstrual periods and can result in heavy periods.

Symptoms most often start late in the childbearing years after having children. Adenomyosis can cause menstrual cramps, lower abdominal pressure, and bloating before menstrual periods and can result in heavy periods. Because the symptoms are so similar, adenomyosis is often misdiagnosed as uterine fibroids. Earlier, the only definitive way to diagnose adenomyosis was to perform a hysterectomy and examine the uterine tissue under a microscope.

 A study conducted with Canadian women, adenomyosis was independently associated with younger age (41.1 years vs. 44.3 years), history of depression (57.1% vs. 24.7%), dysmenorrhea (65.7% vs. 42.3%), and pelvic pain (52.9% vs. 21.1%) in a multivariable unconditional logistic regression analysis compared with women with leiomyomas, where women from both groups had gynecologic symptoms.