How common is the symptom Heavy menstrual bleeding among people with endometriosis?
83,16% of people with endometriosis reported Heavy menstrual bleeding as a symptom of endometriosis in our survey.
How common is the symptom Heavy menstrual bleeding among people with endometriosis compared to the non-affected group?
37,59% of people with endometriosis suffer from the symptom Heavy menstrual bleeding very strong compared to a prevalence of 6,33% among non-affected individuals.
The following table shows the symptom Heavy menstrual bleeding in people with endometriosis compared to non-affected individuals. The scale ranges from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very strong).
| Symptom severity | Endometriosis | Non-affected | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| not at all | 16,84% | 47,47% | -30,63% |
| slightly | 8,57% | 18,35% | -9,79% |
| moderate | 14,22% | 13,92% | 0,30% |
| strong | 22,79% | 13,92% | 8,86% |
| very strong | 37,59% | 6,33% | 31,26% |
Based on the datasets, we calculated the Kendall correlation. The following symptoms could be related to Heavy menstrual bleeding.
| Symptom name | Correlation |
|---|---|
| Prolonged menstrual bleeding | strong correlation (54,00%) |
| Clotted bleeding | moderate correlation (40,00%) |
| Severe menstrual cramps | moderate correlation (36,00%) |
| Lower abdominal pain | weak correlation (25,00%) |
Heavy menstrual bleeding is referred to medically as menorrhagia. A bleed is considered heavy when blood loss during your period exceeds 80 ml. Such heavy bleeding not only causes significant personal distress, but in many cases leads to anemia and iron deficiency. If left untreated, both can result in serious health problems.
Studies show that around 20 percent of women of reproductive age experience heavy menstrual bleeding. The challenge in diagnosis is that objectively measuring blood volume is hardly feasible in everyday practice. As a rule of thumb, menorrhagia is suspected if you need more than five tampons or pads per day. However, this method also has its limits, because each person has a different approach to hygiene products. You are therefore usually asked to keep a bleeding chart that records changes in bleeding intensity and duration.
Various factors can cause heavy menstrual bleeding. These range from stress or side effects of medications and vaccinations to serious conditions such as fibroids and endometriosis. In 90 percent of cases, heavy periods are associated with so-called anovulatory cycles, meaning ovulation does not occur. This leads to a hormonal imbalance between estrogen and progesterone, which in turn disrupts the shedding of endometrial tissue (uterine lining). The result is heavy menstrual bleeding.
In endometriosis, cells similar to endometrial cells grow outside the uterus. The pelvic cavity is particularly often affected by these growths, and endometriotic lesions are frequently found on the ovaries. These cell clusters respond like the uterine lining: they build up and then bleed. If the blood cannot drain, inflammation, adhesions, scarring, and—especially in the ovaries—cysts can develop. These physiological changes can disrupt ovulation or prevent it altogether.