General Surgery Appointment

[cabbage12]

I have a general surgery appointment next week to get the bottom of my pain, seeing as gyni aren't helping. What should I expect to happen? Hopefully my mum will be able to come with me this time.

[Blondedia]

Hi. You haven't explained much about your problem, so not sure what advice to give.

Can you explain further??

[cabbage12 in reply to Blondedia]

Sorry forgot that part, I wrote it late last night.

I am 19 ( and a virgin) and have been experiencing right sided pelvic pain for a year now. The pain has increase over the year in intensity and frequency. It use to be only when I lay down on my back or stomach or when pressure was applied to the area. A few weeks after it started I started to get a constant dull ache which was there most of the time. After that I began to get a sharp, stabbing, cramping, twisting type of pain every so often, maybe one or twice a day. But soon the frequency of that increased. When to my GP who started me on laxido and buscupan thinking it was IBS, but that did nothing. Then went on Amitriptyline for the pain, which didn't. Was sent for a trans-vaginal ultrasound which was clear other than a small follicle. Then was tested for PCOS which was negative. Then sent to Gyni, who didn't listen to me and barely asked any questions, who says that in her opinion it isn't gyni related and told to deal with the pain. Went back to GP who refereed me to general surgery for their input as they did my appendix surgery when I was 15 to see what they think. The sharp pain I am now getting roughly every hour and in some cases more often. I am currently studying Nursing and wanting the problem sorted as soon as so that it doesn't effect my studies, especially when I am on placement.

I have had bad ovulation and period pain since I was 13, which lately has been concentrated on my right side.

[Blondedia in reply to cabbage12]

Wow, so you do have a history then. But unless you have a caring Dr, hopefully a woman as they are more understanding when it comes to female related issues, and also a Dr who has a good knowledge of gynaey related problems, unfortunately you won't get very far, but you need the GP, because they need to refer you.

I have my pelvic pain in my left side. My problem is severe endometriosis.

Unless you have had an MRI scan, or a laparoscopy, then they won't know for sure what your problem is.

This is such a slow process to get diagnosed. My MRI scan was in 2011 and I didn't get my lap until February 2014.

If you have cysts, these will show on your ultrasound scan as you know, but any small lumps or cysts like endo, will not. I suggest you keep going back to your Dr until they send you to the hospital to see a consultant, which is what happened to me, and then he put me down for a lap operation. Unfortunately if it is endo, even after a lap, you won't ever be pain free, we're stuck with that pain for life, but it can be reduced significantly.

Unfortunately as you are only 19 years, they tend not to worry too much, they think there can't be anything wrong with you and your be fine etc, but endo can affect you at any age and it is horrible!!

Don't give up, keep pushing, the more you complain, the more likely they are to do something about it. See a different Dr as well, find out if there is one at your surgery who is more knowledgeable with gynaey related problems.

Lisa xx

[cabbage12 in reply to Blondedia]

It doesn't help that the main GP I see who refereed me to Gyni has left my practice and the one that refereed me to general surgery has retired. However, there is a new women doctor who works at the Sexual Health clinic in Glasgow so I might start going to see her.

[Blondedia]

Yea, do what's best for you. Xx

[Impatient]

It may be nothing more than scarring and adhesions from the previous surgery which are now glueing everything near the old appendix together possibly including the ovary which could account for feeling the sharp pop when you ovulate. If the ovary is getting to the point of being swamped in sticky adhesions -painful ovulating from that side is more likely to occur.

It may not be endo -can't rule that out of course, but certainly adhesions are higher on the list of likely causes simply because of a previous surgery there.

An adesiology surgery to cut back all the adhesions of the previous surgery is probably what they will be aiming to do or look for first of all and carry out if needs be, along with using some form of buffer or barrier to delay the regrowth.

It can only ever be a temporary fix as adhesions never stop growing- but they can be delayed and other organs can be offered some level of protection for a while.

Unfortunately every surgery increases risk of scarring and adhesions developing so surgery is not always advisable or at least having too many surgeries is not the best plan.

IF by chance they do uncover endo in there when rummaging around then that puts a different spin on things and there will be quite a bit more homework for you to do on the endo side of life, but hopefully that is not going to be the problem. Endo causes adhesions too, double whammy!!

I wouldn't rule out a leaking ovarian cyst either - your symptoms certain match with that too.

An ultrasound doesn't always pick up cysts. I had two that completely missed a very quiet 8cm cyst.

It was only when I mentioned that an ovary could not be seen on a previous scan that a more through scan around was done 'big bertha' was spotted.

I mean 8cm is an orange size - how could that possibly be missed? but it certainly was, and it turned out to be an endometrioma too.

You can only do your best to keep pestering them to investigate - never give up when you know something is not normal and not right.

[cabbage12]

So went to may appointment today at 5pm. I was a bag of nerves all day and took my mum with me due to my previous experience at gyni. I got seen by the consultant 20 minutes late as he was doing surgery. He asked me the general questions and what test had been done so far, then had a feel of my belly and asked a few more question. He believes it is adhesions from my appendix surgery 4 years ago, but doesn't want to proceed in doing anything yet. He doesn't want to do a CT scan due to my age and the level of radiation ( in his words because i am a young woman) or a lap as it could do more harm than good and cause more adhesions. So I am getting sent for an abdo ultrasound ( as i only had a pelvic ultrasound that didn't go over the area of pain) to check what is going on and will been seen again in 3 - 6 months and see if the pain has increased or not by then.

I am glad they are taking me serious this time but I still feel like I am getting nowhere. Only time will tell I guess. At at the current rate my pain is increasing and I going to be doubled over 24/7.

Part of me still thinks it is endo or something gyni related as the pain increases when I am on/ due my period.