Cervical erosion: causes of onset, symptoms and signs

Cervical erosion is one of the mostfrequent gynecological diseases. It can occur in women of any age, but is more often detected after 30 years. The main signs of cervical erosion are the appearance of small defects in the form of wounds and ulcers on the mucous membrane. Thus, the integrity of the epithelium is disrupted and its protective properties are reduced. Symptoms of cervical erosion are most often absent or very slight and do not cause concern to a woman for a long time. The disease is detected during a routine examination by a gynecologist. Since the development of the disease most often occurs against the background of various sexually transmitted infections, symptoms characteristic of these infections can be observed: vaginal discharge, itching on the genitals, pain in the perineum and lower back. In medicine, it is customary to distinguish 2 types of cervical erosion: congenital and acquired. Congenital (or pseudo-erosion) is an ectopia and usually occurs in young women and girls under 25 years of age, in whose blood the level of progesterone is slightly increased. In this case, the prismatic epithelium covering the cervical canal is located outside of it and is determined during a medical examination as a velvety reddening of the mucous membrane. Ectopia is not considered a disease and is one of the normal variants, since the cells are not damaged, and the lichens are modified. As a rule, treatment is not required in this case. Pseudo-erosions are not accompanied by any symptoms, and women feel absolutely healthy. Acquired (true) erosion is a fairly serious disease that refers to benign tumors of the female genital tract. During examination, it is visually determined as a bright red spot on a pale background of the mucous membrane of the vaginal part of the cervix. Erosion is not a precancerous disease, but the transformation of cells that occurs against its background somewhat increases the risk of developing cervical cancer. Therefore, if there are signs of cervical erosion, the doctor prescribes an additional examination for the woman (colposcopy, biopsy, bacteriological analysis of discharge) and conducts appropriate treatment. In the future, such patients should be regularly monitored by a gynecologist and have a smear test for cytology.

Why does cervical erosion occur?

The causes of cervical erosion can be varied. The most common factors that provoke the development of the disease are the following:

Inflammatory processes of an infectious nature. These include, first of all, sexually transmitted diseases: urogenital chlamydia, trichomoniasis, mycoplasmosis, gonorrhea, genital herpes, papillomavirus infection.
Inflammations of a bacterial nature.
Injuries of the cervix.
Disorders in the endocrine system.

Infectious inflammatory diseases

Microorganisms are powerfulirritants, under the influence of which there is a restructuring of the epithelial cells of the cervix, as well as processes of inflammation and destruction of its tissues, leading to the development of cervical erosion.

Urogenital chlamydia occurs wheninto the body of the pathogen - chlamydia, which is sexually transmitted. The favorite habitat of chlamydia is the mucous membrane of the cervix. In women, the main symptoms of urogenital chlamydia are burning and itching in the perineum, pain when urinating, vaginal discharge. In advanced cases, the infection may spread, adnexitis (inflammation of the appendages) and infertility may develop.

Trichomoniasis. When infecting trichomonads cause inflammation of the genitals. In this case, the main symptoms in women include reddening and itching in the genital area, the appearance of foamy, sharply smelling discharge from the vagina, pain when urinating. Often, trichomoniasis passes into a chronic form and causes infertility of women.

Mycoplasmosis and ureaplasmosis are infectionswhich often accompany other inflammations, such as chlamydia and trichomoniasis. The main signs of infection are burning and pain when urinating, and vaginal discharge.

Gonorrhea. The cause of the disease are gonococci. The main symptoms are pain during urination, purulent discharge from the vagina.

Human papillomavirus infection is one ofpossible causes of cervical cancer, especially when combined with other infections. It is caused by the human papillomavirus and is transmitted mainly sexually. The first symptoms of the disease are the appearance of pointed papillomas on the genitals and keratinized scales on the mucous membrane of the cervix.

Genital herpes is caused by a virus thata long time can not show itself in the body. But under certain conditions, sooner or later, inflammation develops, which causes erosion.

The appearance of erosion on the cervix can be caused by:may also cause inflammations that are not sexually transmitted. They usually occur against the background of decreased immunity and various hormonal disorders, and can also be a consequence of uncontrolled use of antibiotics.

Bacterial vaginosis. The cause of its appearance is a violation of the composition of normal microflora in the vagina. The main symptoms: itching and burning on the genitals, discharge with an unpleasant odor (fish).

Thrush (candidiasis).The causative agents of this infection are Candida fungi. It is characterized by the following symptoms: white cheesy vaginal discharge, itching, burning during urination and sexual intercourse.

Other factors contributing to the development of erosion

Sometimes erosion can occur as a result ofdisorders of the endocrine system, especially in the glands that produce sex hormones. The cause of the disease may be mechanical injuries to the mucous membrane. This occurs as a result of abortions, childbirth or rough sexual intercourse. An unhealthy lifestyle, in which there is a frequent and disorderly change of partners, also contributes to the development of erosion.