Endometriosis is a disease affecting one out of seven women in the world that is characterized by foreign tissue similar to the uterus lining found elsewhere in the womans body. Bacterial invasion, such as the kind caused by pelvic inflammatory disorder, can lead to chronic endometriosis. The problem is more widespread than most people realize, and more than 5.7 million women have endometriosis in the United States alone. The figures climb drastically higher when you take the world into account.

Although the cause of endometriosis is not fully known, treatment is possible and early diagnosis will definitely lessen the chance that the disease will be chronic. Some women suffer through the painful symptoms of chronic endometriosis year round, sometimes for more than twenty-five years without ever going to a doctor or being diagnosed. Some of those symptoms are painful, heavy, or irregular periods, fatigue, vomiting, stomach problems, infertility, and pelvic pain.

Many women affected by this disease have problems with fertility and are more exposed to fibromyalgia syndrome, asthma, allergies and even some rare forms of cancer. Several methods of treatment are available, so it is crucial that women suffering these symptoms visit a doctor as soon as possible. Many thousands of women experience these painful symptoms and never get the medical care that they so desperately need.

There are a number of treatment methods for chronic endometriosis including pain management, laparoscopic surgery, and hormone treatments. Once endometriosis has been diagnosed, talk to your doctor or gynecologist about which treatment is best for you.