What should I do if my menstrual flow is small?

If a woman's menstrual flow is light, clinical practice generally involves a blood test for hormone testing to determine whether there is a problem with the hormone secretion system in the uterus, ovaries or pituitary gland. Secondly, you can observe ovulation status by drawing a basal body temperature chart or ultrasound. For abnormalities in growth hormone metabolism, such as small menstrual flow caused by insufficient progesterone, the problem can be improved by supplementing progesterone copper; if it is caused by abnormalities in the ovulation period, ovulation disorders need to be treated with surgical treatment or other methods.

1. Medical record check: Understand the past menstrual history, whether there is a history of amenorrhea, pregnancy history, history of artificial abortion, whether there is a history of chronic diseases or taking drugs that affect menstruation, whether there is a history of gynecological diseases, etc.

2. Gynecological examination: Check whether there are any unique abnormalities in the internal and reproductive organs, and determine which symptoms may be caused based on the abnormalities in the sexual organs, and then conduct further examinations.

3. Ultrasound examination: Pelvic ultrasound or vaginal ultrasound can be performed. Through B-ultrasound examination, the ovulation status of women can be observed, and whether women have symptoms such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome and intrauterine adhesions can be diagnosed. If women have a history of ectopic pregnancy or multiple miscarriages, it can also be observed whether the scanty menstrual flow is caused by these reasons.

4. Six sex hormone tests: Blood tests to check the levels of hormones such as follicle-stimulated growth hormone (FSH), progesterone (LH), estradiol (E2), progesterone (P), testosterone (T), and lactation hormone (PRL) to determine whether women have endocrine abnormalities and to decide on treatment methods based on the test results.

Small menstrual flow means that a woman has too little blood during her period, or her menarche is too short. Menstrual volume refers to the total amount of blood loss during a menstrual period. Normal menstrual volume is 20-80mL. If it is lower than this standard, it is considered too little menstrual volume. Generally speaking, if a pack of sanitary napkins (10 pieces/pack) is not used in each period, and there is very little blood on one piece, but only soaking the surface, it means that the menstrual flow is light.

What is the reason for light menstrual flow? Some women have very little menstrual flow from the beginning of their first menstruation, which may be caused by uterine hypoplasia. A sudden decrease in normal menstrual flow may be caused by abnormal hormone secretion or anovulatory menstruation.

The main reasons for the small amount of menstrual flow include the following three aspects:

1. Uterine hypoplasia. Menstruation is the shedding and bleeding of the uterine wall that occurs with the change of the uterine and ovarian cycle. If the uterus is underdeveloped, such as the uterus is enlarged or deformed, only a small amount of uterine wall will fall off in each menstrual cycle, resulting in a small amount of menstrual flow. In addition, endometrial tuberculosis causing endometrial degeneration or curettage causing damage to the uterine wall can also lead to scanty menstruation or even amenorrhea.

2. Abnormal growth hormone metabolism. Estrogen can stimulate the proliferation of women's uterine wall. If the body's hormone secretion is abnormal, the proliferation of the uterine wall will not reach the required thickness, resulting in less menstrual flow. Excessive dieting, excessive work and rest time, bad mood, urinary system diseases, etc. will affect the female endocrine environment, causing abnormal hormone secretion and small menstrual flow.

3. Anovulatory menstruation. Women who do not ovulate will still have their periods, which is medically called "anovulatory menstruation." This is different from normal menstruation and falls into the category of "multifunctional abnormal uterine bleeding". The characteristics of this type of menstruation are irregular time and very little blood.