This section contains a glossary of medical terms and words that you may come across when learning about endometriosis.
A
Abdominal hysterectomy: a hysterectomy carried out through a cut in the abdominal wall.
Adhesion: Fibrous scar tissue that is formed inside the body. They are usually caused by trauma to tissue – which can happen with endometriosis or because of an injury, or during surgery. They are a cause of pelvic pain. They can attach organs to each other inside the pelvis, or to the pelvic wall.
Anaesthetic: Induced loss of feeling and awareness in a patient. Anaesthetics can be either local or general. A general anesthetic puts the patient to sleep (makes them unconscious), a local anaesthetic will numb a part of the body.
Androgen: A hormone that stimulates or controls the development and maintenance of masculine characteristics. Testosterone is the most commonly known androgen.
Anaemia: A condition caused by heavy blood loss, excessive red blood cell destruction, or a deficiency in the production of red blood cells. It causes a low red blood cell count, which leads to extreme tiredness.
B
Back pain: Pain felt in the low or upper back. There are many causes of back pain.
Bowel: The section of the digestive system that runs from the stomach to the rectum (anus). It is also known as the intestine. The small bowel and the large bowel are the small intestine and large intestine, respectively. The bowel works by digesting and then absorbing the nutrients form the food we eat, then by making stools (faeces/poo).
C
Cervix: The ‘neck’ of the womb or the opening between the body of the womb (uterus) and the vagina.
Chronic: Persistent and lasting a long time.
Chronic fatigue syndrome: Persistent, disabling fatigue (exhaustion) that affects every day life and doesn’t go away with sleep or rest.
D
Disease: Illness or sickness that usually has typical symptoms
Dysmenorrhea: Painful periods.
Dyspareunia: Painful sex.
E
Ectopic pregnancy: When a fertilised egg stays in the fallopian tube and starts to develop, instead of travelling into the womb. This can be dangerous and even life-threatening if left untreated.
F
Fallopian tube: A tube that lies between the ovary and the womb, and transports the eggs to the womb. A woman has two Fallopian tubes.
Fatigue: Extreme tiredness. It can come on quickly, or be a chronic condition.
Fibroid (leiomyoma): A benign tumour of the uterus (womb).
G
Gynaecologist: A doctor who specialises in female conditions – primarily the reproductive and urological (kidneys, bladder etc) organs. Your doctor may refer you to a gynaecologist to investigate symptoms.
H
Hormone: A chemical substance released inside the body that controls and maintains the activity of cells or organs.
Hormone Replacement Therapy – HRT: Medication used to mimic the effects of oestrogen. It is prescribed after a hysterectomy or during menopause (either natural or medical) to counteract the effects of the menopause. Those effects include hot flushes, night seat, loss of libido, mood swings, loss of bone density and vaginal dryness. HRT has its own risks and should be carefully considered before taking.
Hysterectomy: The removal of the womb from the body during surgery. There are several different ways this is done, see below:
- Total hysterectomy: The removal of the womb (uterus) and the cervix, under anaesthetic.
- Sub-total hysterectomy: The removal of just the body of the womb (uterus).
- Total hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy: Removal of the womb (uterus), cervix, ovaries and fallopian tubes.
Hysterectomy can be done with or without removing the ovaries. If the ovaries (or disease elsewhere) are left in place then endometriosis is likely to continue occurring.
I
Immune system: The system within the body that secures against harmful substances; it enables the body to recognise materials as foreign to itself and to neutralise, eliminate, or metabolise them with or without injure to
Incision: A cut made into the body, by a doctor during a surgical procedure.
Infertility: The inability to become pregnant; if a couple has a year of regular, unprotected sex and doesn’t become pregnant, then that is also classed as infertility.
Inflammation: A way in which the body reacts to infection, irritation or other injuries. Inflammation causes swelling and pain. With endometriosis, inflammation is caused by the release of hormones called prostaglandins.
J
K
L
Laparoscope: An instrument, like a small telescope with a light on one end, used to look at the inside of the pelvis, during a laparoscopy.
Laparoscopy: The only way to diagnose endometriosis is through a procedure called a laparoscopy. Usually done under general anaesthetic, a small telescope with a light on the end (the laparoscope) is inserted into the pelvis through the navel (belly button). The laparoscope usually has a camera to transmit the images to a video monitor, which the surgeon uses to look inside the body. Carbon dioxide gas is used to extend the abdomen, to give the surgeon room to see the organs. The surgeon can move the laparoscope around the abdomen, to look for endometriosis. They may make another small cut to insert surgical instruments to treat the endometriosis or they might remove part of it to be examined at a later stage, this is known as a biopsy. After the procedure, the gas is removed.
M
Menopause: When a woman’s ovaries stop functioning and her periods stop. This can either be artificially induced through drugs or a hysterectomy, or happen naturally.
Menorrhagia: Heavy periods.
Menstruation: The monthly cycle where the body prepares for pregnancy. Every month a woman’s body goes through hormonal changes. Hormones are naturally released which cause the lining of the womb to increase in preparation for a fertilized egg. If pregnancy does not occur, this lining will break down and bleed – this is then released from the body as a period.
Miscarriage: Spontaneous loss of a foetus from the womb.
N
Nausea Feeling sick or queasy and needing to vomit.
Navel: The belly button, otherwise known as the umbilicus.
Neurectomy: The removal of a nerve, can be done to help relieve pain.
O
Obstetrician: A doctor who specialises in delivering babies and monitoring pregnancies.
Obstruction: When something is blocked (obstructed) e.g. the bowel.
Oestrogen: The female sex hormone produced in the ovary. It is produced in response to hormones (FSH and LH) released from the pituitary gland and controls the female sex characteristics, e.g. breasts. It is responsible for the growth of womb lining.
Oligomenorrhea: Infrequent periods
Ovaries: The organs that produce eggs in the female body.
Ovarian cyst: A growth in or on the ovary, filled with fluid. Called an endometrioma, when caused by endometriosis and filled with dark, old blood.
Ovarian failure: When the ovary no longer responds to the hormone FSH and does not produce follicles (with eggs) – either because it is damaged or hasn’t formed properly or has no eggs left. This can be spotted by a blood test in which the FSH in the blood is raised.
Ovulate/ovulation: When the egg is ripe and is released from the ovary. The follicle surrounding it breaks open and it will travel into the fallopian tube, to wait for fertilisation. If the egg then becomes fertilised it will travel into the womb and implant.
P
Pain: The body’s response to damage or injury. It is subjective and everybody has different tolerances of pain. It is a message that travels through the nerves into the brain and is there as a defence mechanism – to alert us to when something has happened to us. It can range from mild discomfort to agony. Pain can be classified as acute or chronic; pain is usually defined as ‘chronic’ when it lasts 6 months or longer. Definitions of pain include, neuropathic, chronic, and visceral (coming from the organs).
Physiotherapist: A specialist healthcare professional who treats patients with exercises, activities and physical manipulation. Physiotherapists treat muscles and joint problems. They can be seen privately or under the NHS (with a referral from your GP).
Pituitary gland: The area of the brain that acts as the ‘control centre’. It controls all hormonal functions, including reproductive organs.
Pregnancy: When a baby develops inside the womb, from being an embryo to developing into a foetus. Pregnancy lasts for nine months until the woman gives birth.
Premature menopause: Menopause that occurs naturally before the age of 40. Also known as premature ovarian failure.
Premature ovarian failure: A condition where the ovary runs out of eggs before the woman would normally go through a menopause.
Puberty: The time of life when the body begins making adult levels of sex hormones (oestrogen or testosterone) and starts developing adult body characteristics: developing breasts, growing facial and pubic hair, starting periods etc.
Q
R
Rectum: The last 6 to 8 inches of the large intestine (bowel). The rectum stores solid waste until it leaves the body through the anus (bottom).
Reproductive age: The time in which a woman can conceive a child – e.g. from the start of periods to the menopause.
Resection: Surgical excision (removal by cutting) of a portion of an organ or other structure.
S
Side effects: Problems that occur when medication or a treatment goes beyond the desired effect or problems that occur as well as the desired effct of the treatment/medication. All medications will have their side effects printed on the information leaflet. Surgery The treating of medical problems or illness through manual treatment – e.g. physically touching or cutting into the body. Usually is done under general anaesthetic or local anaesthetic so the patient doesn’t feel pain during it. Surgery normally carries risks.
Symptom: Evidence of disease or illness that is only apparent to the patient. A doctor can see a sign of disease or illness – for example a swollen ankle, but only the patient will know if it hurts (symptom). Pain is a symptom.
T
Tissue: A group of cells that perform specific functions in the body. There are four types:
Epithelium – composed of layers that cover organ surfaces such as surface of the skin.
Connective tissue – holds everything together.
Muscle tissue – parts of the inside of the muscle
Nervous tissue – Cells which make up the brain, spinal cord and nervous system.
Transvaginal surgery: Surgical procedures carried out through the vagina. The surgeon would insert instruments through the vagina and into the abdominal cavity or womb. Some hysterectomies have been carried out this way. As this means not making an incision into the pelvis, it carries fewer risks.
Transvaginal scan: An ultrasound performed through the vagina, using a special vaginal transducer. Transvaginal scans gives better resolution of the ovaries and fallopian tubes. The procedure is usually painless, noninvasive, and safe.
Tumour: A mass of cells growing inside the body. They can be benign or cancerous.
U
Ultrasound: An investigative procuedure where the inside of the body is looked at (visualised) using high-frequency sound waves. These waves bounce off tissues and organs inside the body. They are then converted into a picture called a sonogram. Ultrasounds allows doctors and their patients to get an inside view of the body in a safe, non-invasive way. Ultrasound is often used to examine a foetus during pregnancy.
Uterine fibroids: Abnormal, benign (non-cancerous) growths of muscle within the wall of the womb.
V
Vagina: The muscular canal extending from the cervix to the outside of the body. The vagina allows for the transportation of body fluids (e.g. menstrual or ‘period’ blood or sperm) to and from the womb to the outside of the body. The vagina is also used during sexual intercourse, as the penis is inserted into it.
Vaporisation: A method of destroying endometriosis by boiling the deposits with a laser. The heat causes the deposits to turn into vapour and disappear.
W
Womb: The uterus. It is an organ inside the woman’s body which is responsible for carrying a foetus during pregnancy. The lining of the womb sheds every month, in response to hormones, if a fertilised egg is not received. The bottom or opening of the womb is called the cervix.