Contact with anus, mouth, vagina and penis can cause transmission of gonorrhea. This may also be carried forward from the moth to the child, during the vaginal delivery. There is nothing unusual if a sexually active person is diagnosed with gonorrhea. Highest number of gonorrhea patients in America is reported among African Americans, young adults and teenagers who are sexually active.

Symptoms of gonorrhea are more commonly noticed in men as compared to women, who usually have mild symptoms. Burning sensation at the time of urination, swollen testicles and green, yellow or white white pus from penis, accompanies by pain are a few common symptoms that are observed in infected men.

On the other hand, women infected with gonorrhea may have bleeding whenever she indulges in vaginal intercourse, bloody or vaginal discharge and burning or painful discharge during urinating.

Antibiotics are the easy solution to treat gonorrhea. Patients suffering from this infection are often diagnosed with C. trachomatis, which is the bacterium that leads to chylamydia. As a result, dual therapy is usually recommended by physicians to cure both microorganisms and assure you a safe and healthy living. An oral dose of antibiotics is given, that is available on prescription.

A pregnant women infected with gonorrhea can easily be cured without causing any harm to her fetus. However, it is imperative that the physician or gynecologist must be timely informed about the same. This is because tetracyclines and fluoroquinolones are the two most commonly prescribed drugs for gonorrhea treatment but these are not recommended for pregnant women, who are advised to take macrolide and cephalosporin to treat the infection.

In case of delay or non-treatment of this infection, many complications may develop. Pelvic inflammatory disease that causes tubal pregnancy, which causes mother’s death as well as miscarriage, is one possible complication in such cases. In the case of men, epididymitis is the complication that can be pointed out. This affects testicles and is quite an aching condition that may cause infertility.

Hence, it is advisable to seek treatment for gonorrhea as soon as possible. Being a sexually transmitted disease, it is best to refer to a sex specialist for a better diagnosis. There is nothing to feel shy in discussing your sexual issues with these experts as they understand your condition and are beneficially placed to give you useful advise due to their years of experience and knowledge in such issues that makes them a sex specialist. So, if you have noticed any of the symptoms described above, it is a good idea to take the opinion of a sex specialist about the same.

1. Pain at the time of coitus or dyspareunia – Pain during a few initial intercourses are quite common and nothing to worry about, as they diminish on its own after some days of intercourse. So, girls on their honeymoon may not fret any such pain during their few initial intercourses. However, if you continue to have pain during sex after some time, a visit to a gynecologist is advisable to know the cause and appropriate timely treatment.

Vaginal infections, such as trichomoniasis and chylamydia can be a reason in few cases. Also, Vaginismus at the time of coitus may cause vaginal spasmodic contraction that leads to pain. This may occur due to emotional discomfort, apprehensiveness towards sex or vaginal infections. Uterine fibroids, polyps and endometriosis are some other culprits that can lead to pain at the time of intercourse. Anti-infective treatment along with the advice of a gynecologist paves the best way out of this misery.

2. Bleeding – Bleeding may occur during or even after your intercourse. A gynecologist is the best person to probe into the cause, as underlying problems, such as cervical polyps, pelvic inflammatory disease, cervical cancer, gonorrhea, and cervicitis are often blamed for this predicament. Nevertheless, if such a situation is faced by a post-menopausal woman, the bleeding is normally because of vaginal dryness, which is a resultant of hormonal depletion. Hormone replacement therapy is a highly recommended treatment to restore the normal sexual life for such cases.

3. Urinary continence – Some women experience the embarrassing situation of dribbling urine, either after or during the coitus. It is quite common to see women complain about urinary continence at the time of penetration or after getting the orgasm. Weakness at bladder’s neck or an irritable bladder is the perceived cause, though no cause has been pin-pointed until now. Having an empty bladder and avoiding caffeinated drinks just before the coitus may prove to be of some help. A gynecologist is again your best rescuer.

Apart from the mentioned problems, a few minor problems, like semen allergies or post-coital headaches also occur in some rare cases. Disharmonized coitus may lead to emotional problems among couples because of discord of any kind. Counseling and psychotherapy provides a solution to such problems.

Shying away from a gynecologist is never a good idea. Talk to her as freely as you talk to a good your friend, abide by the prescription and her instructions and you are sure to enjoy a healthy and gratifying sexual life.

As long as your gynecologist doesn’t declare your pregnancy to be risky, it is considered safe to have sex when you have normal pregnancy. Checking with your gynecologist in the following situations may help you have a more clear view, if your pregnancy can be deemed as “normal”:

• If you have any problems during pregnancy like bleeding, placenta praevia or if you have had miscarriages before
• If you are over 35 years or have had fertility treatment. While some women may have an enhanced sex drive during pregnancy, others may be reluctant to have sex at all
• In case of bleeding or spotting during the initial phase of your pregnancy
• When you or your partner is infected with any STD, like genital herpes

After a clear view in these situations, you may or may not go ahead with having sex during pregnancy. However, you must not lose heart if you did not get the go ahead to have sex at this time. There are always different ways you can experiment to exhibit your intimacy to your partner. Like, you may massage each other gently; have a comfortable hot water bath together or simply cuddle up with each other.

For those who are free to have sex during pregnancy can surely take pleasure in making love but there are certain things that should be avoided at all costs during pregnancy:

• Deep penetration and violent sex may harm the expecting mother
• Using foreign objects at the time of sex
• Sex in couches, beds or bath tubs that aren’t very strong
• Using lubricating gels or creams as they may cause skin irritation and allergic reactions

After making love, pelvic area must be cleaned thoroughly and wipe it dry with dirt free tissue paper or fresh towel.

Many couples might be of the opinion that having sex during pregnancy may harm their child. Though this might be true for women who have a risky pregnancy, those with normal pregnancy need not worry about it at all as their child is absolutely safe. Amniotic sac protects the unborn baby completely along with strong uterus muscles. Cervix is also sealed by the mucus plug, which is very thick. This guards the child against infection and no contact is established between the penis and the fetus, at the time of sex.

Couples who can make love during pregnancy don’t mean that there is any compulsion to make love. Sometimes, due to larger body size or inconvenience, many partners often feel reduced sex drive. Communication along with other methods to exhibit intimacy can keep your sex life going strong, after pregnancy. Or, another alternative is to experiment with different sexual positions in which both of you feel most comfortable.

Have you been tired of your excessive menstrual bleeding? If yes then chances are that a common benign tumor, namely, uterine fibroid, might be developing in your uterus. They grow alongside the uterine walls or sometimes, even with them. Growth of these tumors can be both independently and in clusters. Muscle tissues that lie within your uterus are the primary abode of fibroids, where their growth begins. Further, it spreads to uterine cavity, within the uterine wall or in abdominal cavity over the exterior of uterus.

Abdominal swelling, pelvic pain, abnormal bleeding, postmenopausal bleeding, frequent urination, cramps, back pain, miscarriage or infertility, constipation and problems or pain during the intercourse are some other symptoms, besides heavy bleeding, that are indicators of fibroids.

However, steps need to be taken at the earliest, in order to dissipate fibroids as soon as possible, instead of waiting until it’s too late. Even when fibroids do not seem to create any problem and are minimal, they should not be ignored. Rapid development of this tumor, due to ignorance, may cause major problems to many internal organs of your body.

Almost 25% of women in America are victim of fibroids, out of which, many are forced to get their uterus removed, as an escape route. Though there is nothing that can be specifically pointed about as a primary reason for fibroids but changing levels of oestrogen are believed to play an important role in their growth. Fibroids may even happen in an early age of mere 20 years and diminish after menopause as body no longer produces oestrogen after that.

Risk factors that are often associated with proliferation of fibroids are:

• Obesity
• Nulliparity (When you have never produced children)
• Onset of menstruation before the age of 10.
• African American inheritance

In some very rare cases, fibroids may even become a reason for infertility and few surgery options may lead to sterility.

Fibroids treatment normally varies according to symptoms of the patient, location and size of their fibroids, their general health, desire to bear children and proximity of their age to menopause.

Endometrial ablation, Myolysis, Myomectomy, Laparascopic myomectomy and Hysterectomy are some of the treatment options that are available to you. Meanwhile, to ease your fibroids symptoms during menstruation, you can try the following:

• Take over-the-counter medicines to seek relief from body aches and cramps
• Take complete rest in bed, if symptoms get worst
• Eat iron-rich food and ask doctor if iron supplements are advisable for you. This helps to avert anemia due to excessive menstrual bleeding
• Take a warm bath or hold a warm water bottle against your stomach to seek relief from pain

In case, you are seeking the answer to how you can avert fibroids from occurring or reoccurring, unfortunately there is nothing that can be said in the matter till now. Cure is all we can look forward to, at this time.

]]> http://www.healthdiseaseandcare.com/womens-health/fibroids.html/feed 5 http://www.healthdiseaseandcare.com/womens-health/breast-cancer-%e2%80%93-a-nightmare-for-women.html http://www.healthdiseaseandcare.com/womens-health/breast-cancer-%e2%80%93-a-nightmare-for-women.html#comments Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:33:58 +0000 Roshan http://healthdiseaseandcare.com/?p=10 Having a positive biopsy or a suspicious mammogram for breast cancer are the scariest words that a woman can hear from her physician. Breast cancer isn’t just concerned with ill health, like all other diseases. There are several other issues that are associated with it, such as death, surgery, losing sexuality, body image and so on. Hence, it’s a stressful condition, both physically and mentally.

Unfortunately, this is the topmost reason for cancer among women and seconds the list of reasons that is causing cancer deaths in U.S. women. This is usually found in women in the age group of 45 to 55 years. Although, this is more common in women but even male population is not completely spared from its fatal condition. However, breast cancer accounts for only 1% of the total cancer deaths among the male population.

Increased awareness about the risk for breast cancer has increased the women’s concern about the disease and as a result, the number of females who are undergoing mammography screening. This leads to timely detection of the disease at an early stage and thereby enhances the chances of survival.

The most common symptom that serves to be an indication for breast cancer is the lump discovered in the armpit or breast. Some other symptoms are – lump or swelling in breast or armpit, retracted nipple, nipple discharge, pain or discomfort in nipple or breast, pitted or scaly skin over the nipple and continuous tenderness of breast.

One in every eight women becomes a victim of breast cancer once in their life. Though there is nothing that can be said regarding why women are most affected by breast cancer but there are a few unchangeable risk factors that are found to be the culprit:

1. Age – possibility of breast cancer increases in women as they age.
2. Genes – BRCA1 and 2 are the two genes that are highly responsible for breast cancer. Women whose family members have ovarian or breast cancer are advisable to get themselves checked regularly.
3. Periods – Women whose period begin before the age of 12 or whose menopause occur after the age of 55 needs to be careful.

Any woman who drinks alcohol, take pills for birth control, is overweight, have dense breast, have undergone hormone replacement therapy or those who have their first child later than 35 years of age are also at great risk and must stay alert for any warning signs.

Ductal carcinoma is the most common type of breast cancer, accounting for 85-90% of the total cases. This is followed by lobular carcinoma with 8% of the breast cancer cases. Besides these two, Paget’s disease of nipple and inflammatory breast cancer are the types of breast cancer that are not found very commonly.

Breast cancer that can spread from their original site of tumor to other breast or body parts is referred to as invasive breast cancer. Survival rates of breast cancer patients have greatly increased in the past decade with early diagnosis and better treatment methods.