Pelvic inflammatory disease, often called PID, is an infection that occurs in a woman’s reproductive system. It occurs when bacteria, or other organisms, travel through the cervix and into the uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes. Inflammation of the fallopian tubes, which is commonly known as Salpingitis, is the most frequent symptom of the disease…
WHAT CAUSES PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE?
PID is often the consequence of many sexually transmitted diseases. However, bacteria may also enter the reproductive tract any time the normal barrier created by the cervix is disturbed. This can happen as a result of childbirth, miscarriage, abortion, bacterial vaginosis (BV), or various other gynecologic procedures, including intrauterine device (IUD) insertion, endometrial biopsy, HSG, artificial insemination, and hysteroscopy.
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE?
PID can cause many different health issues, such as infertility, chronic pelvic pain, ectopic pregnancy, ovarian or tubal abscesses, and even peritonitis. Untreated PID has even been known to lead to death. The warning signs of pelvic inflammatory disease are not consistent among women. For some women, the symptoms can be acute with sudden and often severe pain; for others, PID can be chronic with long term, but more moderate symptoms. Sometimes PID is silent with no noticeable symptoms. PID with mild or no symptoms is especially common when the infection is due to chlamydia.
The presence or lack of PID symptoms does not signal the amount of damage the reproductive organs sustain. There may be serious blockages or adhesions that would signal infertility, even if a woman experiences no symptoms at all. Some women, in fact, only discover they have pelvic inflammatory disease after going through an ectopic pregnancy or after trying to conceive unsuccessfully for a long period of time.
The typical infections associated with pelvic inflammatory disease are gonorrhea and chlamydia. Treatment usually involves antibiotics to treat the underlying infection, rather than treating just the symptoms. Sometimes however, especially in severe emergency cases, surgery may be required to drain an abscess that has ruptured or that is close to rupturing.
HOW COMMON IS PELVIC INFLAMATORY DISEASE?
Statistics from the early 1990s have shown that more than ten percent of the women questioned reported having experienced PID. In fact, PID was more than two-and-a-half times as common in women with a history of sexually transmitted diseases (26 percent) than among women who had no history of an STD (10 percent).
According to the CDC (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), more than 750,000 women experience an episode of acute PID each year; almost half of these women are hospitalized for acute PID. Because so many occurrences of PID are silent and involve no symptoms, and because PID is often missed or undiagnosed, the actual number of PID cases is unknown and likely to be even higher.
SIGNS & SYMPTOMS
While many women do not experience noticeable symptoms with pelvic inflammatory disease, many others experience a variety of symptoms.
Signs of PID may include the following:
- Irregular menstrual bleeding or bleeding between cycles
- Pain in the lower abdomen and pelvis
- Painful or difficult urination
- Pain during intercourse
- Lower back pain
- Heavy vaginal discharge with an unpleasant odor
- Exhaustion, diarrhea, or vomiting
- Fever or other common signs of infection
When the symptoms of PID are severe, a trip to the emergency room may be necessary.
If you experience the following severe symptoms of PID, be sure to get medical help quickly:
- Severe pain low in your abdomen
- Fever, with a temperature higher than 101° F (38.3 C)
- Vomiting
- Signs of shock, such as fainting
If symptoms are not severe, but they are on-going, make an appointment with your doctor as soon as possible. Several symptoms, such as vaginal discharge with an odor, bleeding between menstrual cycles, or painful urination may actually be related to a sexually transmitted infection (STI). If the STI is treated quickly, it can help prevent PID. Keep in mind that, if these signs and symptoms appear, you should stop having sex until you see your doctor.
There are a number of factors that increase a woman’s risk of developing PID, including:
- Being a sexually active woman under the age of 25 (sexually experienced teens are 3 times more likely to be diagnosed with PID than women over the age of 25)
- Having more than one sexual partner or having intercourse with a person who has sex with more than one partner
- Having an IUD recently inserted
- Having sex without a condom
- Douching on a regular basis (douching upsets the balance between good and bad bacteria in the vagina, masking early symptoms of an STD or PID)
DEDICATED TO YOUR SUCCESS
If you are experiencing any of the signs and symptoms listed above, be sure to make an appointment with your OB/GYN as soon as possible. If you have not been successful in your attempts to conceive, consider seeking more specialized assistance from a fertility clinic. The reproductive specialists and staff at the Center of Reproductive Medicine are well known for their high level of success in helping couples to conceive. At CORM, our professional staff is committed to providing the highest quality reproductive medicine, ensuring exceptional care is given to every patient/couple undergoing fertility treatment. CORM serves the greater southeast area of Texas with full-service fertility clinics in Houston, Webster, and Beaumont.
If you are looking for more information regarding infertility or the psychological impact of infertility, be sure to call the professional staff at the Center of Reproductive Medicine today. CORM serves the greater southeast area of Texas with full-service fertility clinics in Houston, Webster, and Beaumont; the professional staff at CORM uses the latest techniques and procedures to help patients achieve the gift of a new life. The reproductive specialists and experienced staff at the Center of Reproductive Medicine understand the emotional toll that infertility takes on individuals and couples; they will work closely with you to help you find the emotional support that you need during your infertility journey.