Endometriosis Care in Lusaka

Symptoms worth investigating

Period pain that stops you working or studying is not something to accept. Endometriosis can also cause pain during sex, pain when opening the bowels, pain between periods and difficulty conceiving.

• Severe or worsening period pain
• Pelvic pain outside your period
• Pain during or after sex
• Pain with bowel movements or urination during periods
• Difficulty becoming pregnant

How it is assessed

Assessment starts with a careful history of your pain pattern, an examination and ultrasound. Ultrasound cannot exclude endometriosis, so where symptoms persist, laparoscopy is the way to see and treat disease directly.

Treatment

Treatment aims at your goal, whether that is pain control or pregnancy. Medical management can control pain and bleeding; surgery treats disease that medication cannot reach. Where conception is the goal, treatment is planned with the fertility team.

• Pain management and hormonal treatment
• Laparoscopic diagnosis and treatment
• Fertility assessment where conception is the goal
• Ongoing review, because endometriosis is a long-term condition

Endometriosis and fertility

Not every woman with endometriosis has difficulty conceiving, but some do. Because gynaecology and fertility care are in the same hospital, assessment and fertility planning do not have to happen in separate places.