Infections of the ovaries, Fallopian tubes, and uterus were extremely common in the past. Today, these diseases no longer cause untold misery to women. However, the fact that any woman still suffers from them is a needless tragedy. Other types of infectious diseases that may attack these organs are also yielding to modern medicines.
Injuries resulting from pregnancy and childbirth have also been tremendously reduced by modern obstetrical methods.
Relaxed tissues or muscular injuries can cause hernias such as a cystocele—a bulging of the bladder due to the weakness of the vaginal wall; or a prolapse of the uterus, in which the cervix is pushed far down into the vagina; or a displacement of the uterus. If any of these conditions is severe, surgery may be necessary. Often, however, they can be treated by other means.
Leukorrhoea
Non-bloody vaginal discharges, usually called leukorrhoea or the whites, are almost as troublesome as menstrual disorders. They, too, are symptoms rather than diseases, and may be due to something relatively minor or potentially serious.
An excessive discharge can be due to any disease of the genital tract, including gonorrhoea and syphilis and other infections, cancer, polyps, lacerations of the cervix that sometimes occur during childbirth, or the irritation caused by an ill-fitting pessary. Occasionally, it is due to some condition outside the genital tract—for example, malnutrition or even pelvic congestion associated with heart disease.
Always consult a doctor for persistent leukorrhoea, or any discharge that is not colourless or that is accompanied by itching or irritation.
Leukorrhoea is frequently caused by a one-celled micro-organism known as Trichomonas vaginalis. This organism causes a yellowish discharge with an unpleasant odour, often accompanied by itching of the external genitals, and sometimes chronic inflammation of the cervix.
Infections of the cervix
The cervix of the uterus may become inflamed by the same condition that causes leukorrhoea, and also by injuries during childbirth and by irritations of various kinds. Chronic cervicitis is usually cured by cauterization, which removes or destroys the inflamed area. It is not a painful procedure. An inflamed cervix should be treated promptly, because it is a fertile area for cancer.
Cervical polyps, a type of small tumour, should always be removed and examined under the microscope to see if they are malignant.
Atrophis vaginalis
Elderly women are very prone to have vaginal infections, due to the ageing of the tissues. After the doctor has eliminated the possibility of cancer and other diseases that might cause the vaginal discharge, he can usually relieve the condition by treatment with vaginal suppositories containing the ovarian oestrogen hormone.
Itching of the genitals
Itching of the genitals (pruritus vulvae) is frequently caused by leukorrhoea and vanishes when it is corrected. However, itching may be due to irritation from urine, especially in diabetics, to skin diseases, and to mechanical irritations such as chafing or nervous scratching of a very minor inflammation. The possibility of an allergic reaction should not be overlooked. Pruritus vulvae is most frequently found in women who are in their later years. It is important to discover and eliminate the cause of the symptoms. Phenobarbitol or another sedative will relieve nervous tension caused by the itching.
Hysterectomy
Hysterectomy means removal of the uterus, or womb. Once the uterus has been removed, a woman is not able to bear a child. The unnecessary removal of the uterus is particularly tragic to women who want to have children, or who may want to have them in the future. A hysterectomy does not always include removal of the ovaries, so normal hormone production may continue after the operation, and a woman does not undergo symptoms of the menopause.
I recommend, however, that a hysterectomy never be performed unless two physicians agree on the need for it. One should be your family doctor, the other a specialist in gynaecology.
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