Why do menstruation come in clots? Menstruation with blood clots: causes and when to see a doctor
If your periods come in clots, this may indicate both normality and various diseases. For example, endometriosis, fibroids, polyposis, hormonal disorders.
Why do I have heavy periods with blood clots?
Regular periods without severe pain and bleeding are a sign of a woman’s health and indicate that the body is ready to bear a child. If the color changes or the intensity of the discharge increases, then the cause may be an inflammatory disease that requires urgent treatment. The most common question that women turn to a gynecologist with is: why do menstruation come with clots and what causes this condition?
During menstruation, the endometrium lining the uterine cavity is detached. The tissue is rejected and, along with the blood, comes out through the vagina. If a girl is in a horizontal or sitting position for a long time, the blood is retained in the uterus and coagulates. After rising, clots that are darker in color than usual may come out. Women who spend their critical days in bed often notice a similar condition.
Another reason why clots accumulate may be uterine retroflexion. This is a congenital or acquired pathology in which the cervix bends. The normal flow of blood is also delayed and leads to clotting.
If your period comes with clots after sitting or lying for a long time, this is not a pathology and does not require any treatment. If bleeding increases, pain appears in the lower abdomen, discharge changes color or has an unpleasant odor, or body temperature rises, you should consult a doctor.
Pathological causes
Clots can also appear against the background of gynecological diseases of an inflammatory, infectious or oncological nature. These include:
- endometriosis;
- uterine fibroids;
- polycystic ovary syndrome;
- endometrial polyposis;
- hormonal imbalance.
Provoking factors include menstrual irregularities, prolonged delays in menstruation, previous births and medical abortions, treatment with hormonal drugs and oral contraceptives.
Hormone balance
Sex hormones androgens are responsible for the reproductive function of women. Under their influence, the follicle matures, which contains the egg, and ovulation occurs. The ovaries produce progesterone and estrogens, these hormones prepare the uterus for the attachment of the fertilized egg. If conception occurs, the fetal membrane synthesizes gonadotropin, which is responsible for the growth of the uterus and the cessation of spasms. If fertilization does not occur, hormone levels decrease before the onset of menstruation.
Hormonal imbalance leads to disruption of the menstrual cycle, problems with ovulation, and difficulty for women to become pregnant and carry a child to term. Symptoms of the pathology include:
- weight gain;
- delayed menstruation;
- menstruation with blood clots;
- increased irritability, aggressiveness;
- chronic fatigue;
- insomnia;
- decreased sex drive;
- male pattern hair growth on the face and body;
- alopecia.
The cause of hormonal imbalance may be the onset of menopause, taking oral contraceptives, malignant tumors of the ovaries, uterus, and adrenal glands. An important role is played by lifestyle, proper nutrition and excess body weight.
A special analysis helps determine hormone levels. The pathology is treated by an endocrinologist, gynecologist or oncologist. After a course of therapy, the menstrual cycle normalizes, the discharge acquires normal consistency, volume and color.
Signs of endometriosis
With endometriosis, cells in the inner layer of the uterus grow outside the organ. The new tissue retains the function of the endometrium, which causes bleeding every month that cannot come out. An inflammatory process occurs, acute pain occurs in the lower abdomen, and the uterus increases significantly in size. There may be difficulty urinating and having bowel movements.
Clinical signs may vary depending on the location of the lesions. Endometriosis can be genital and extragenital. In the first case, the growth of the endometrium occurs within the uterus and ovaries. With the extragenital form, the tissues extend into the abdominal cavity. The cause of the disease is hormonal imbalance.
Symptoms of endometriosis:
- sharp pain in the lower abdomen, radiating to the intestines and lower back;
- during menstruation, blood clots, bleeding lasts longer;
- spotting after the end of menstruation;
- painful sexual intercourse;
- premenstrual syndrome;
- pain during urination and bowel movements.
The disease leads to infertility, and it is often with this problem that women turn to the doctor. During the examination, endometriosis is diagnosed. For treatment, hormonal drugs are used; in severe stages, surgical intervention is indicated. The pathology has a favorable prognosis; women can become pregnant and give birth to a healthy child.
Uterine fibroids
This is a benign formation that occurs in the myometrium of the uterus as a result of impaired cell division. The tumor is a cluster of smooth muscle tissue nodes of varying sizes. The disease is most often diagnosed in women of premenopausal age.
The reasons for the formation of fibroids include hormonal disorders, abortions, late onset of menstruation, too much menstruation, previous inflammatory and infectious diseases of the genital area. Provoking factors are: obesity, sedentary lifestyle, frequent stress.
Typical symptoms of uterine fibroids:
- heavy, prolonged menstruation;
- during blood;
- feeling of heaviness, fullness in the lower abdomen;
- anemia due to prolonged menstruation;
- cramping pain;
- in severe stages, urination and defecation are difficult.
At the initial stages, the disease is asymptomatic, but later heaviness and discomfort arise in the groin area. Characteristic symptoms include heavy periods with clots, which can cause anemia. After the end of the critical days, brown spotting persists, and intermenstrual bleeding occurs.
Women feel weakness, apathy, the skin and mucous membranes turn pale, dizziness appears, and fainting may occur. Acute pain occurs when the fibroid stalk located under the peritoneum is torsion. The blood supply to the tumor stops, and the tissue begins to die.
Treatment is carried out conservatively and surgically. Medicines slow down tumor growth and normalize a woman’s hormonal levels. The operation is performed when the formation is large. There are several ways to remove fibroids; which one is most effective depends on the severity of the disease and the age of the patient.
What is endometrial polyposis
Polyps of the uterine body are formed from endometrial tissue. These are benign growths that can have a thin stalk or a wide base and reach several centimeters in diameter. There may be several polyps.
Polyposis develops against the background of hormonal disorders with increased levels of estrogen and progesterone deficiency. The cause of the pathology may also be previous inflammatory, infectious diseases, or medical abortions.
Small growths do not have any special manifestations. With significant growth of the nodes, prolonged bleeding (more than 7 days), cramping pain appears, and spotting dark discharge persists after the end of menstruation. Uterine bleeding may occur between regulae. Polyps obstruct the outflow of blood, it coagulates and can form clots. In young women, the disease causes infertility due to the inability of the fertilized egg to attach to the wall of the uterus.
Treatment is carried out by scraping the walls of the uterus and cervical canal. Hormonal therapy is prescribed at the discretion of the doctor.
Treatment with boron uterus
Widely used in folk medicine for the treatment of gynecological diseases and female infertility. The plant contains phytohormones that normalize the balance of estrogen and progesterone and have antitumor properties.
The duration of menstruation may increase, blood clots may be released, and breast pain may occur. This is due to intensive renewal of the endometrium, hormonal changes in the body and is considered normal, with the exception of uterine bleeding.
For the treatment of ovarian cysts, endometriosis, erosion, and menstrual irregularities, the uterus and uterus are used. Treatment must be carried out under the supervision of a doctor and after testing for hormone levels. You need to take the herb in courses according to a specific schedule.
To understand why, you should visit a gynecologist and conduct an examination, take tests for the level of sex hormones. Self-medication and delays in visiting a doctor can lead to complications and the development of infertility.
httpss://youtu.be/0OR0n6XsI_0
We recommend similar articlesEach woman’s period can be different and not always certain indicators are violations. In many cases, these are individual characteristics of the body that do not go beyond the norm. Menstruation can be quite heavy, painful, or vice versa - only three days and a minimum of blood. Based on this, we can say with confidence that there can be different explanations for this behavior of the female body. And sometimes they are quite unpredictable.
You should consult a doctor if heavy periods with severe pain recur every time. Also, if clots are observed at the beginning and middle of menstruation, this is a characteristic sign that something is going wrong in the body. And you should consult a doctor to determine the causes of strong discharge and undergo treatment if necessary.
Heavy periods or bleeding: how to determine
Doctors hear complaints that menstruation is quite heavy and that in addition to all this there are pieces of coagulated blood. Unfortunately, a common diagnosis for such manifestations is adenomyosis. This disease can occur in any girl or mature woman. In this case, age and time do not matter.
As a rule, there is no cause for concern if the case is not advanced. And you can find out this with the help of an ultrasound. It is worth noting that the clots themselves do not pose any danger. It's just clotted blood. This happens most often during heavy periods. Therefore, doctors often recommend monitoring all discharge (especially clots in the middle of the menstrual cycle), even to the point of counting grams of discharge per day. If it is 80 or more grams of blood, then you need to consult a doctor, because otherwise an adenoma may develop. It is useful to carry out such calculations from time to time even if you have regular periods, because there is no guarantee that the menstrual flow will always be small.
Quite often, it is due to the presence of iron deficiency anemia that strong menstruation with clots is observed. In some cases, women complain that large pieces of thick blood come out. Therefore, one way out of this situation is to treat anemia. In most cases, it is after treatment that periods become more stable and constant at any time. For this, it is also important to know the level of hemoglobin and keep under control the presence of other cells in the blood on different days of the menstrual cycle.
Constant prevention and examination will allow you to monitor your health, and long breaks can only worsen the situation. Therefore, if you are diagnosed with anemia, then it is better to monitor your health in time and there will be no problems with menstruation. This is especially true in the middle of the menstrual cycle, when abundant clots with impurities are observed. You may be prescribed special medications that contract the uterus during menstruation. Thus, the discharge will be gradual and regulated.
After childbirth
If heavy discharge began within a month after childbirth, then there may be two options. Either these are remnants of placental particles that did not have time to come out during the first menstruation, or this is the result of poor uterine contractions. For the first reason, additional curettage may be required, which will help to say goodbye to clots and completely cleanse the uterus.
As for the second option, for better contraction of the uterus it is necessary to take special medications so that the remaining clots in the uterus do not cause harm. In this case, blood can come out in large portions over a certain period of time, after which everything will be restored. Let us note that such reasons for worry can be observed throughout the entire first month after childbirth, so you should not panic ahead of time, but rather seek the advice of a doctor. In this case, almost every woman in labor encounters heavy discharge and clots.
In addition to the fact that clots can be observed with obvious disorders, there are quite a few cases where this is observed during an increase in body temperature.
Often the reason for this is the presence of certain infectious diseases, which provoke rapid blood clotting. Most often, there is no need to be alarmed by the appearance of clots, because this is a completely normal process, especially if your periods are not painful or heavy. Not only at the beginning of menstruation, but also in the middle there may be clots on the pad, especially since at the end of the menstrual cycle the uterus should be completely clean.
Hormonal imbalance
Most often, heavy periods are observed in teenage girls or women who have just given birth. This is explained in the first case by the reaction of establishing hormonal balance in the body. Clots during menstruation can appear several years before menopause. This phenomenon can be explained by the fact that there is a disruption in the usual hormonal levels, regarding the presence of estrogen and progesterone. At this time, a woman may complain of headaches during menstruation, poor general health, and why this happens is quite clear.
In general, hormonal imbalance at any age makes itself felt and the first thing that may alert you is the appearance of clots at the beginning or middle of menstruation. As a personal precaution, you can get examined by a doctor so that when you experience monthly clots, you are not surprised and do not fear serious illnesses as a result of them.
Endometriosis as a cause of thick discharge during menstruation
Quite often, this disease is the cause of heavy periods. This is the most common disease that can occur in a woman at any age and at any time. Infected areas of the uterine mucosa are indicators of the presence of this disease, and the most dangerous thing that can happen is that areas of the endometrium grow into the muscular lining of the uterus and go beyond normal limits.
If this disease is not stopped in time, the consequences can be serious. In this case, heavy discharge is simply inevitable. Moreover, menstruation with blood clots is always observed in such patients and is more often painful.
Neoplasms in the uterus
Heavy periods and the appearance of clots in the middle of menstruation are quite a significant sign of the presence of neoplasms in the uterus. These could be fibroids, polyps or cysts. Such benign tumors cannot be left unattended for a long time, and it is better to remove them altogether. Why they appear and what are the reasons for their development is not always known.
Long periods with clots can be a clear indicator of cancer, and therefore malignant tumors in the female organs. In this case, you may experience clots and thick dark blood during menstruation. Then it is not recommended to delay the consultation with a doctor, because anemia may occur and the treatment will be more than serious. Heavy discharge can only aggravate the situation, especially in the middle of the cycle.
If menstruation does not proceed as usual, a woman becomes anxious. Many have encountered the problem of blood clots during menstruation.
The reasons for this phenomenon can be different - from changes in lifestyle to the development of pathological conditions in the reproductive system of the female body.
Normally, every month an egg matures in a woman’s body and is capable of further fertilization. The reproductive organs begin to prepare for a possible pregnancy, the production of specific hormones occurs, and as a result, the inner layer of the uterus, the endometrium, thickens.
If conception does not occur, hormone production decreases. As a result, the blood supply to the tissues of the uterine cavity decreases and the endometrium begins to be rejected, which comes out through the genital tract. This is menstruation - a discharge that contains blood, particles of mucous tissue and the endometrium.
Blood clots during menstruation
If your period begins with blood clots, the reasons may be different, and this is not always a pathology. Normally, discharge during menstruation should not be liquid; its color and consistency are also different.
Particularly abundant blood clots during menstruation are observed when the body position changes, for example, when a woman gets up from a chair or rises from a lying position.
The reason is that in a stationary position, lying or sitting, blood stagnates in the uterus, which gradually coagulates. Therefore, menstruation comes with blood clots, which in this case cannot be called a pathology.
Nature has also provided for the behavior of a woman’s body during menstruation. During this period, special enzymes are produced that act as anticoagulants, that is, they stop the rapid clotting of blood.
However, enzymes are not able to quickly perform their function. Therefore, blood clots come out during menstruation, the reasons in this case are completely harmless.
Signs of pathology
We found out why blood clots come out during menstruation. But this phenomenon is not always the norm. In some cases, a woman should be wary, for example, when she sees blood clots during menstruation that look like liver.
The volume of discharge during menstruation is usually no more than 250 ml. If you have the following symptoms, a woman should definitely consult a doctor:
- excessively heavy menstruation, turning into bleeding;
- menstruation is accompanied by;
- discharge comes out;
- prolonged menstruation.
Reasons
Let's look at the main reasons why menstruation deviates from the norm:
- Hyperplasia of the endometrium of the uterus. This disease is one of the most common causes of large pieces of clotted blood in monthly discharge. The condition can develop as a result of diabetes, obesity, and hypertension.
- Uterine fibroids. This is a benign tumor that results in... When the disease occurs, the discharge is often very copious and contains clots.
- Hormonal imbalance. If there is a malfunction of the hormonal system, heavy menstruation is quite likely, sometimes.
- Endometriosis. The endometrium grows further from the uterine cavity, moving to other organs. Menstruation is characterized by profuseness, irregularity, and the woman experiences severe pain.
- Polyps. In this case, the tissue of the uterine cavity grows like polyps.
- Navy. An intrauterine device, which is placed for contraception, can be perceived by the body as a foreign body. The resulting discharge contains pieces of clotted blood.
- Curettage and childbirth. Within a month after childbirth or surgery, menstrual flow may be abnormal. Copious discharge with clots may be accompanied by fever. First of all, it is necessary to exclude the remains of fragments of the placenta in the uterus.
- . This condition is characterized by copious discharge, accompanied by pain in the lower abdomen and fever.
- Problems with clotting. In this situation, the blood begins to immediately clot in the uterine cavity, since the enzymes that prevent hemocoagulation do not act.
- Taking medications for. If a woman self-medicates and takes pills or Norkolut during pregnancy, heavy periods may appear. The reason may be that the delay is not due to progesterone deficiency.
- Inflammatory processes of the organs of the reproductive system.
- Colds and acute respiratory viral infections.
- Excessive amount of vitamin B in a woman’s body.
When is a visit to the doctor necessary?
If there are large clots in the discharge, a woman should go to the doctor. You should especially hurry if menstruation is accompanied by severe, unusual pain, and is also long-lasting and excessively heavy.
Situations when a visit to the gynecologist cannot be postponed:
- duration of heavy menstruation for more than 7 days;
- clots in the discharge are accompanied by an unpleasant odor;
- periods cause severe pain;
- a woman is planning a pregnancy; in this situation, discharge with clots may indicate a miscarriage.
Let's summarize the above. Blood clots during menstruation are normal if the woman does not feel any other changes in her well-being. However, if heavy bleeding contains large clots, has an unpleasant odor and is accompanied by severe pain, which has not happened before, this is a reason to consult a doctor without delay. The doctor will prescribe an examination to determine the reasons for the deviation from the norm.
Video about painful menstruation
It happens that in addition to menstruation, women experience discharge in the form of blood clots at a certain period; they are able to react to this in different ways. Some take this sign for granted, others go to the gynecologist so as not to expose their body to any danger. You should not be alarmed if you notice rare blood clots.
Get examined by a gynecologist to find out the likelihood of a connection between the symptom that appears and other diseases.
During your period, if you notice blood clots once, this is not a reason to worry. It’s just that in the uterus there is a detachment of the epidermis from its walls - a physiological process provided for by nature. During menstruation, blood clots are released when a pathological septum forms.
There may be a bend in the cervix, which is an obstacle to the natural release of blood. As a result, blood clotting occurs in the inside of the uterus, which becomes clots. In this circumstance, it is especially important that they do not simply accumulate in the inside, but subsequently come out.
Deviations
The deviation presented above can be identified by a gynecologist during a standard examination of the patient. If it turns out that the doctor does not detect such an anomaly, and clotted discharge repeats during menstruation, this may indicate anemia. It can also speak about itself during heavy menstrual flow. Under such circumstances, a woman should be attentive to the amount of blood released from the body.
There is nothing difficult in determining the mass of discharge. In one day it should be 80 g. To quantify the contents of a sanitary pad, you should find out its weight while it is not used, and then determine its weight with menstrual contents. As a result, sum up all the values obtained during the day, this will be the desired weight. This will also make it clear what the likelihood of anemia is.
Menstruation with clots
There are cases when menstruation with the release of clots causes anemia, based on a lack of iron in the body. As a result, we can talk about iron deficiency anemia. If we take into account scientific research, the release of clots is in some way associated with a lack of iron. So when iron deficiency is normalized, there will be no more blood clots during menstruation. Just don’t take iron-containing medications when clots first appear.
What answer can be given to women who are concerned about the release of clots during menstruation? Ladies should not forget that during active activities, blood from the vagina enters more intensely and in larger volumes. And during a relaxed state, sitting or lying down, the exit process slows down. This is what creates anxiety for a woman when she gets up very quickly from a lying position. If in such cases clots are released, then this is normal. Great importance should be attached to blood clots when they are accompanied by pain.
The formation of menstrual clots can be abundant. The emerging situation is not even iron deficiency anemia, it is much more dangerous. When observing menstrual flow, you need to pay attention to this.
Important signs are:
- Abdominal pain that causes anxiety;
- The discharge changes color;
- The appearance of an unpleasant odor;
- Heavy menstrual bleeding.
During a medical examination: colposcopy, ultrasound, examination with a mirror, when the above signs are absent, but there are clots, adenomyosis can be diagnosed in gynecology.
When a woman discovers brown discharge with clots, it makes her worry. Worries are not significant if brown discharge during menstruation appears when your period is just beginning, or when it is already ending. But if such discharge represents menstruation itself or during menstruation, then immediately contact a gynecologist. The cause of this disorder in the menstrual cycle may be an infection or the presence of an ectopic pregnancy. In addition, it would not be superfluous to take tests for hormones in the body; this can rule out the presence of hormonal disruptions.
Even when you are pregnant, brown periods with clots are possible. The cause of their occurrence is a hematoma that forms in the area of the internal pharynx. If a pregnant woman does not lift even the slightest weight, she may be able to carry her child to the very end of her pregnancy. But we should not forget that brown discharge should not be abundant. So if they increase, visit your doctor immediately.
Blood clots also occur during the postpartum period. But they end after three weeks or, in some cases, after a month. If this does not happen, you will have to deal with the removal of the placenta that remains after the birth. This sign may be facilitated by contraceptives or the result after the installation of the “spiral”. For a woman, this should mean that this form of pregnancy prevention is extremely unsuitable for her, and it must be removed from the uterus.
One of the reasons when a woman has periods that come in clots after sexual intercourse may be erosion. To clarify, you should contact a gynecologist, which will help you find out the presence or absence of other diseases in the genitourinary system.
These include pathologies of the uterus, such as:
- Endometrial hyperplasia– this is the proliferation of uterine tissue due to dysfunction of the gonads. There are several types of this disease, and they can lead to endometrial cancer. And as a result - the likelihood of infertility. Symptoms include abnormal bleeding between periods, long periods of two to three weeks, heavy menstrual periods, anemia, obesity. Know that smeared discharge indicates polyposis, while blood discharge indicates the presence of glandular hyperplasia and adenomatosis. Endometrial hyperplasia can affect both young women of reproductive age and older menopausal women.
- Uterine fibroids– a benign tumor of the smooth muscles of the uterus, which regulates the growth of sex hormones. Occupies approximately a quarter of gynecological diseases of women who consult a doctor. Women aged 30-50 years suffer most from this disease. Symptoms include heavy menstrual periods, pain in the lower abdomen and lower back, and bleeding between periods.
- Polyp– benign growth on the mucous membrane. Polyps can be the result of infection and occur as a result of chronic inflammation, which is an abnormal response to increased estrogen and congestion of blood vessels in the cervical canal. It is not always possible to say with certainty what the cause is. There are asymptomatic origins of polyps.
Symptoms include vaginal bleeding:
- Between menstruation;
- After sexual intercourse;
- After the onset of menopause.
A polyp in the cervix can be inflamed, but is rarely infectious. Then yellow or white vaginal discharge occurs. A polyp in the cervix is usually observed in women over the age of twenty who have had several pregnancies. Polyps are most often discovered for the first time during a regular examination by a gynecologist. Typically, one polyp develops, but sometimes two or three can be found. Elimination of the polyp can occur during a gynecological examination using special forceps, if it is transparent and does not bleed. Bleeding is eliminated surgically and under general anesthesia.
Endometriosis is a disease in which cells from the endometrium (the lining of the uterus) grow outside the uterus, on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, intestines, bladder, or other abdominal organs. The first signal to see a doctor will be manifestations of blood clots. If this process is started, it can contribute to infertility. To determine endometriosis, a thorough examination and high-class equipment are necessary; fortunately, such equipment is available in gynecology. Also, one of its manifestations is pain during menstruation and after its end.
Depending on which area is affected, the treatment of this disease will depend. Sometimes the doctor prescribes a course to restore the balance of hormones to the patient, which often turns out to be ineffective. In such circumstances, specific surgical interventions are used. During the operation, endometriotic nodes are removed, and as a result, there is a high probability that everything will get better, including menstruation.
Various herbal remedies are intensively used in the treatment of the nodes described above. In addition, it would not hurt to use them if clotted discharge has increased in abundance, causing anemia. Before the onset of menstruation, approximately two to three days, you should take decoctions of bloodroot, yarrow or nettle. It is necessary to apply 50 g of one of the decoctions in three approaches per day. Water pepper or red viburnum are also suitable for this procedure.
If during your period you notice the appearance of dense blood discharge, you should not immediately prepare yourself for the worst, because this does not always serve as a manifestation of some pathological process. Let's figure out what could be the cause of clots during menstruation.
First of all, you need to understand that the composition of a woman’s menstruation is not only blood, but also vaginal mucus, the inner layer of the uterus, and cervical mucus. Monthly endometrial rejection, by its nature, cannot be characterized by a homogeneous structure, which is why menstruation occurs with the release of a certain number of small clots. Please note if these clots become abnormal, which can be noticed by every woman who is well versed in the nature of her menstruation. Menstruation with abnormal discharge (clottes of large size and quantity) may be a consequence of early rejection of the placenta and fetus. A woman may not be aware that she is pregnant and only realize that she is pregnant when such discharge appears, accompanied by severe pain and prolonged menstruation. Diseases of the female reproductive system are characterized not only by painful periods, but also by disturbances in their regularity, quantity and composition. Only a doctor can diagnose uterine fibroids, polyposis or endometriosis (excessive growth of the inner mucous membrane of the uterine cavity), but the development of these diseases can be indicated by a large number of clots released during menstruation.
To exclude the possible development of pathological conditions of the female genital area, if discharge uncharacteristic of menstruation appears, consult a gynecologist.