Most women will experience heavy menstrual bleeding, also known as menorrhagia, at some point in their lives. However, for many women, heavy menstrual bleeding occurs at every cycle. Heavy blood loss, especially when accompanied by painful cramping, can affect a woman's daily routine. Physicians can often provide treatments that can provide relief from heavy bleeding and cramping and help women return to a normal routine.
Oral Contraceptives
Most women take birth control pills to prevent an unwanted pregnancy. However, oral contraceptives contain the hormones estrogen and progesterone that can help regulate menstrual cycles and reduce episodes of excessive or prolonged bleeding. The National Institutes of Health warn that oral contraceptives carry side effects, including a risk of heart attacks, blood clots and strokes. This risk of suffering these side effects increases in women who smoke and women over the age of 35. Women over 35 or who smoke may wish to consider other options for dealing with heavy menstrual flow.
Iron Supplements
Women who continuously have heavy menstrual flows may suffer from a condition known as anemia. Anemia occurs when the body does not have enough red blood cells necessary to carry oxygen to all the tissues and organs in the body. Symptoms of anemia include fatigue, weakness, paleness, cold hands and feet, irregular heart beat and lightheadedness.
Patients who suffer from anemia may need a blood transfusion. If a woman suffers from a low iron count but is not yet anemic, physicians may opt to put her on an iron supplement to help replace the iron lost.
Endometrial Ablation
Many women with heavy menstrual bleeding suffer from a condition known as endometriosis, in which the cells lining the uterus begin to grow outside of the uterus. These uterine cells may attach and grow on the ovaries, the fallopian tubes, the bladder and bowels. This may cause scarring of the organs and infertility.
Heavy menstrual bleeding occurs during endometriosis because the uterine cells still shed and bleed every month even though they are not in the uterus. Normal uterine tissue sheds and leaves through the vagina every month. The abnormal endometrial tissue sheds as well, but the blood and cells have nowhere to go. This leaves them to collect in the abdominal cavity, causing pain, bloating and a feeling of heavy pressure on the bladder and bowels, especially when urinating or having a bowel movement. The surgical removal of the abnormal endometrial tissue can usually ease menstrual flow and cramping and help women who are attempting to conceive.
Hysteretomy
In cases of heavy menstrual bleeding where a woman is past childbearing years or has decided she no longer wishes to conceive, physicians may opt to perform a hysterectomy, in which the surgeon removes the reproductive organs. This will cause a cessation of menstrual periods and surgical sterilization. After a hysterectomy, a woman will go into menopause, and hormone replacement therapy may be necessary.
