Endometrioma.

If you are having trouble conceiving a baby one of the reasons may be endometriosis, a known cause of infertility. Endometriosis is a condition where endometrial cells grow outside of the uterus, usually in a woman's abdomen, and attach themselves to the reproductive organs and in severe cases other abdominal organs. These cells react to the woman's monthly menstrual cycle the same way the endometrial cells of the uterus do. Unlike the cells inside the uterus, which slough off and leave the body during a woman's period, the endometriosis cells bleed into the abdomen causing pain and discomfort.

Endometriosis does get worse with time as the cells slowly multiply. The result of this is an increase of blood and nutrient matter released into the abdomen each month. With no place to go the blood pools and causes inflammation which in turn can cause scarring on and in the organs affected.

It is this scar tissue which may be responsible for a woman's infertility. It can block the fallopian tubes keeping the egg from reaching the uterus or sperm from reaching the egg. Endometriosis is also responsible for ovarian cysts, which are called endometrioma. These cysts can be extremely painful and can interfere with a woman's ability to ovulate.

Women with mild cases of endometriosis are usually able to conceive and have children. The disease is not advanced enough to cause any lasting affects on the woman's reproductive organs or her ability to get pregnant.

Women with severe endometriosis struggle the most with infertility. Not only does this condition produce scarring and cysts, it can cause a distortion of the pelvic anatomy. The endometriosis actually fuses organs together, pulling them away from their natural position. Ovarian cysts are not only painful but can damage eggs in the ovaries, reducing the quality and quantity of the eggs available for reproduction.

The treatment for women with infertility caused by endometriosis consists of laparoscopic surgery to remove as much scar tissue and endometrial growths as possible. This can then be followed up with six months of a hormone suppressing drug such as Lupron or Zoladex. It is important that women do not attempt conception during this six months as these drugs have been shown to harm unborn fetuses.

It should also be noted that there is a low success rate of women with infertility attributed to severe endometriosis actually getting pregnant. The pelvic distortion and scarring attributed to endometriosis makes natural conception a hard proposition. Women with severe cases of endometriosis can turn to in-vitro fertilization, which has shown some success for those afflicted with this disease.