Gynaecology is devoted to the care of a woman who is not expecting a baby. There are three key areas in the gynaecology section of the website:
1. Know your body, which contains information on how your body and reproductive system works, with information on your fertility and getting pregnant;
2. Screening and Prevention, which contains details on how to screen and prevent diseases such as cancer and osteoporosis; and
3. Common Gynaecology Symptoms (or complaints), their possible causes and likely treatments.
Women have a period each month because they build up the lining of their womb in anticipation of ovulation. After producing the egg, typically mid cycle, the body then matures the lining in anticipation of a pregnancy. If there is no pregnancy the mature or ripe lining must be shed (your period) so the process can be repeated. By understanding more about gynaecology and knowing how your body works you can better understand what is happening to you each month. When your periods become heavy, painful or irregular it usually means there is something wrong with your hormones or there is disease in your pelvis, e.g. fibroids or endometriosis.
In gynaecology, like other areas of medicine, one of the consequences of advancing years is that serious and life threatening diseases become more common, so screening and prevention of common causes of an untimely death is very important – but often neglected in this country. Cholesterol, blood pressure, bone density and cancer screening begin in the mid-forties and carry on being important for the rest of the woman’s life. Sometimes a particular family or personal history will be important in determining the timing and scope of screening recommended.
This site will help you understand more about gynaecology and women’s health issues.