What are the symptoms of adenomyosis?

Many people do not understand adenomyosis, which is also a manifestation of endometriosis in women. It mainly refers to the invasion of endometrial tissue into the muscle tissue of the uterus, resulting in such a disease, which is also very harmful to women's health. It often leads to menstrual disorders, symptoms of dysmenorrhea, and changes in the amount of menstrual bleeding.

1. Menstrual disorders

The main manifestations are prolonged menstrual period and increased menstrual volume. Some patients may also experience spotting before and after menstruation. Severe patients may develop anemia.

2. Dysmenorrhea

The characteristic is secondary progressive dysmenorrhea. It often begins a week before menstruation and is relieved when the menstrual period ends. Taking painkillers can relieve dysmenorrhea in the early stages, but as the disease progresses, the dosage of painkillers required for dysmenorrhea increases significantly, making it impossible for patients to tolerate it.

3. Physical signs

Gynecological examination shows that the uterus is often uniformly enlarged and spherical, and adenomyoma may appear as hard nodules. The uterus is generally no larger than 12 weeks of pregnancy. As menstruation approaches, the uterus feels tender; during menstruation, the uterus enlarges, becomes softer, and the tenderness is more obvious than usual; after menstruation, the uterus shrinks. The uterus is often adhered to the surrounding area, especially the rectum at the back, and has poor mobility. 15% to 40% of patients have concomitant endometriosis, and about half of the patients have concomitant uterine fibroids.

Adenomyosis has a high recurrence rate, but the disease can be cured by hysterectomy and postmenopause. The malignant transformation rate is relatively low. The malignant transformation rate of endometriosis, a disease similar to adenomyosis, is reported to be 1.5% in China and 0.7% to 1.0% abroad. In contrast, malignant transformation of adenomyosis is rare.