MRI after pelvic scan. ..I'm scared!

[Claireabella78]

Hi.

I saw the gynae today and she carried out a pelvic scan. She didn't seem to concerned about my endo but has decided to put me on cerazette for a while. She doesn't believe my back and bowel problems are related to my endo. she found adenomyosis in the womb muscle..

she has asked for MRI to figure out what is going on with my back and bowels and I am scared! What if there's something more sinister? What if I panic in the scanner?

pathetic I know but any experiences or advice would be great

Thanks xx

[miannach]

I can't give you any direct experience but my sister had an MRI scan which established she had adenomyosis which went into her back muscles and so far as I'm aware they couldn't have found this out otherwise. This accounted for back and bowel problems she'd been having.

She had this done as she was invited to take part in some type of clinical trials. Maybe with your gynae finding some adenomyosis in your womb she's looking to confirm if the same thing is causing some of your symptoms. Did you ask your gynae what the MRI was for...if not you could phone and find out.

Hope this helps a little and that everything goes well for you.

[janeingirona in reply to miannach]

Hello Miannach! I'm curious to know a bit more about your sister as I have adeno and back and bowels problems too. Can you clarify what you mean when you mention the back muscles? Would that be the back muscle wall of the uterus (fundus)? If so, that's exactly where mine is but docs so far don't believe the symptoms are linked. Did you sister have successful treatment? Any info would be great! Thanks

[miannach in reply to janeingirona]

Hi there janeingirona. Believe it or not with my sis it was the actual skeletal muscle of her back that they found it growing in/on. Before they found it via Mri they had previously thought it to be a fibroid which is v. Interesting given shehulk's reply below.

In the end my sis had had enough of trying to deal with the pain and so opted for a hysterectomy earlier this year. My understanding is that they couldn't remove the adenomyoma due to it's location but that it shouldn't cause problems after the op? I can only assume this is down to hormonal changes. Fortunately so far she's not had any further pain linked to endo or the adeno. She did have a problem about 15 weeks after op but looks to have been a one off and they can't seem to find the cause. Here's hoping anyway, I wouldn't want her to go through all that to end up with pain again.

Sorry, I know that this is probably not what you'd want to hear. But adeno too can be found anywhere and my point to responding was to say that MRI might pick stuff up in different places. I hope they find what's causing your pain and can treat a little less drastically.

[janeingirona in reply to miannach]

Thanks so much for your reply. I'm assuming it was the endo they found on the muscle wall, as uterine adenomyomas are confined to the uterus. As I don't have any endo the docs assure me that rectal/back pain ccan't possibly from one small adenomyoma;(

You're right; I was hoping for your sister to have only adeno so I could be sure I'm not going mad!!!

[kayjayne]

I hate small spaces but when i have a MRI scan i just try to relax, u have headphones on with music, my advice close ur eyes and jusst think of something else, a holiday shopping list anything, they also give you a button so if you begin to panic or anything you can press it and they bring you out and they tell you everything they are doing so you wont just be stuck in a tunnel.

hope all goes ok

[Mabes]

If you can survive a trip to the dentist, you can survive the MRI - both are unpleasant and you don't have any control, which I think a lot of people find scary.

It's probably not as bad as you think. The scanner is noisy, and I found it cold (they did cover me with blankets). The scan is concentrating on your pelvis so your head is out of the scanner body and not enclosed - in that respect it is quite bearable compared to a head scan!

If you tell them you're nervous, they'll go through what will happen and seek to reassure you. It's not painful or as uncomfy as say a transvaginal ultrasound. I closed my eyes and thought of other things. It didn't take as long as I'd thought it would.

[Shehulk]

Hi, I have both endo and adenomyosis and I have loads of back pain and some bowel issues. I had an MRI that showed the adenomyosis and endo in the bowel. The MRI might be able to see things like end in bowel (mine did) and have a better view of the adenomysys. Before the MRI, they though they I had a fibroid instead of adenomyosis.

Both endo involvement of the bowel and adenomyosis can give you lower back pain, in my case back pain is my worst symptom. If your back/bowel issues get worst at certain times of your cycle is likely that they are related to the endo/adeno (at least that is what the doctor told me). It is helpful to keep a diary of all symptoms so you (and your doctor) can see if there is a pattern.

I found the MRI no problem at all, and it did not take very long. I actually I almost fall asleep inside (even with all the noise)

Hope it all goes well x

[Yazza]

I had an MRI yesterday it is fine bit noisy but you'll wear a headset with music I didn't think it felt clostrophonic it's open on both ends. X

[Claireabella78]

Thank you all for your reassuring replies. I appreciate it more than I can say. Its nice to have support of others who understand. Xxx