Contents
In line with its mission, the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony makes every effort to provide reliable medical content supported by the latest scientific knowledge. The additional flag “Checked Content” indicates that the article has been reviewed by or written directly by a physician. This two-step verification: a medical journalist and a doctor allows us to provide the highest quality content in line with current medical knowledge.
Our commitment in this area has been appreciated, among others, by by the Association of Journalists for Health, which awarded the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony with the honorary title of the Great Educator.
Polyp is a term used to describe a proliferative lesion of the appropriate shape, visible to the naked eye, i.e. macroscopically. It is, therefore, a general name that refers to creations that originate from the mucosa.
There are two types of polyps: Pedunculated polyps, which, as the name suggests, have a certain kind of peduncle or a leg on which they grow, and sessile polyps, i.e. non-pedunculated polyps, which are spherical structures growing above the surface of the substrate. The differences that arise from the different forms of polyps are in how they are diagnosed and treated.
Endometrial polyps – why do they appear?
The reasons for their appearance are not fully known, although hormonal disorders and the predominance of estrogens are of the greatest importance here. They most often affect women between the ages of 30 and 50, but they can occur at any time in a woman’s life.
Cervical polyp versus endometrial polyp – is it the same polyp?
These polyps are different because they are made of slightly different tissues. Benign cervical mucosa hypertrophy rarely contains dilated glands and its surface may be covered with squamous epithelium. Endometrial polyps derive their origin from the stroma, with the endometrial glands present. These differences are especially important from the histopathological point of view, therefore they are always tested in order to determine their exact cell structure.
What other differences are there between these polyps (symptoms, diagnosis, treatment)?
Endometrial polyps – symptoms
Abnormal bleeding is the main symptom that prompts the patient to see a gynecologist. They appear between menstruation, after sexual intercourse or after a gynecological examination. Another problem reported by women may be excess vaginal discharge in the form of abundant mucous discharge. They may precede the appearance of a polyp at the mouth, which, while still invisible, disturbs the proper functioning of the mucosa of the cervical canal and increases mucus secretion.
Similarly, abnormal bleeding occurs in endometrial polyps, but these are mainly prolonged menstrual bleeding, prolonged or premenstrual spotting. Abnormal vaginal discharge is also present. There may be ascending infection and infection of the polyp and the uterine mucosa, the symptom of which may be, among others, purulent discharge from the vagina. It is worth noting here that polyps can give me scarce and underestimated symptoms for a very long time. Pain occurs much less frequently and mainly affects large polyps. The type of pain that the patient describes as systolic or rhythmic is characteristic. This nature is due to contractions of the uterine muscle which, treating the polyp as a “foreign body”, tries to remove it from the uterine cavity.
Diagnosis of polyps of the body and cervix
In the case of cervical polyps, diagnosis is more frequent and easier. This is due to the fact that after reaching the size of peas or beans, these polyps are visible on gynecological examination using vaginal specula. They can be at the mouth of the neck or even protrude and hang out of the canal. Such polyps are visible and palpable on gynecological examination.
A possible, though rare, situation in which it is difficult to distinguish between a cervical polyp and an endometrial polyp is the long-stemmed polyp that appears at the cervical opening. The suspicion of a polyp in the uterine body is most often made on the basis of symptoms reported by the patient or imaging tests, e.g. ultrasonography. Extremely useful, both for diagnosis and treatment, is the hysteroscopic method of imaging the uterine cavity.
Treatment of cervical polyps
In the case of diagnosis of endometrial polyps, the classic method is curettage of the uterine cavity, which, in the case of a histopathological result confirming the diagnosis, is also a treatment. Hysteroscopy is extremely useful as it allows you to see the altered endometrium in detail, visualize the polyp and remove it.
The pharmacological method, i.e. hormonal treatment, can be proposed and undertaken after taking into account several factors. The entire treatment process is supervised by a doctor in close cooperation with the patient.
The removal of the cervical polyp, as a rule, consists in its twisting, which is performed after the appearance of the polyp at the cervical mouth. The procedure is not very burdensome for the patient. The obtained material, both the whole polyp and the one obtained from the curettage of the cervical canal and the uterine cavity, should be subjected to histopathological examination to ensure that it is a benign lesion. It is very important to rule out cancer as malignant changes can have very similar symptoms.
Prognosis, or is it cancer?
Endometrial polyps are benign changes and are not included in the so-called precancerous conditions, which does not mean that a malignant process cannot develop on their basis. A very small percentage of polyp cancer is present. That is why it is so important that a woman who has been diagnosed with a polyp, especially of the endometrium, is under the care and constant gynecological control.
Symptoms such as abnormal bleeding, spotting, vaginal discharge, especially bloody or purulent, and lower abdominal pain should worry every woman. Do not delay the visit to the gynecologist, expecting that it “will go away by itself” or “I’ve always had it like this”. Let us remember that our health and life are in our hands. The discomfort that occurs with the symptoms negatively affects our well-being, indicates an incorrect process that takes place in the body and may endanger human health or life, which is why it is so important to visit a doctor and start treatment.
Literature:
Practical gynecology. Under Red. W. Pschyrembel, G. Strauss, E. Petri. PZWL 1999.
Read also: How is the cervix sick