What happens if i have a prolapse

Pelvic organ prolapse will usually be classified on a scale of 1 to 4 to show how severe it is, with 4 being a severe prolapse. Page last reviewed: 24 March Next review due: 24 March Overview - Pelvic organ prolapse Contents Overview Treatment. It can be the womb uterus , bowel, bladder or top of the vagina. A prolapse is not life threatening, but it can cause pain and discomfort.

Symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse Pelvic organ prolapse symptoms include: a feeling of heaviness around your lower tummy and genitals a dragging discomfort inside your vagina feeling like there's something coming down into your vagina — it may feel like sitting on a small ball feeling or seeing a bulge or lump in or coming out of your vagina discomfort or numbness during sex problems peeing — such as feeling like your bladder is not emptying fully, needing to go to the toilet more often, or leaking a small amount of pee when you cough, sneeze or exercise stress incontinence Sometimes pelvic organ prolapse has no symptoms and is found during an internal examination carried out for another reason, such as cervical screening.

When to see a GP See a GP if you have any of the symptoms of a prolapse, or if you notice a lump in or around your vagina. What happens at your appointment Your doctor will ask if they can do an internal pelvic examination. Content on this website is provided for information purposes only. Information about a therapy, service, product or treatment does not in any way endorse or support such therapy, service, product or treatment and is not intended to replace advice from your doctor or other registered health professional.

The information and materials contained on this website are not intended to constitute a comprehensive guide concerning all aspects of the therapy, product or treatment described on the website. All users are urged to always seek advice from a registered health care professional for diagnosis and answers to their medical questions and to ascertain whether the particular therapy, service, product or treatment described on the website is suitable in their circumstances.

The State of Victoria and the Department of Health shall not bear any liability for reliance by any user on the materials contained on this website. Skip to main content. Reproductive system - female. Home Reproductive system - female. Prolapsed uterus. Actions for this page Listen Print. Summary Read the full fact sheet.

On this page. Symptoms of prolapse of the uterus Degrees of uterine prolapse Causes of uterine prolapse Treatments for uterine prolapse Pelvic floor exercises Prevention techniques Where to get help. Symptoms of prolapse of the uterus The symptoms of uterine prolapse include: a sensation of heaviness and pressure in the vagina a distinct lump or bulge within the vagina a bulge protruding out of the vagina painful sexual intercourse. Degrees of uterine prolapse Uterine prolapse is described in stages, indicating how far it has descended.

The four categories of uterine prolapse are: Stage I — the uterus is in the upper half of the vagina Stage II — the uterus has descended nearly to the opening of the vagina Stage III — the uterus protrudes out of the vagina Stage IV — the uterus is completely out of the vagina.

Causes of uterine prolapse The pelvic floor and associated supporting connective tissues can be weakened or damaged in many ways including: pregnancy, especially in the case of multiple births such as twins or triplets , or multiple pregnancies vaginal childbirth, especially if the baby was large or delivered quickly, or if there was a prolonged pushing phase obesity straining on the toilet to pass a bowel motion low levels of the sex hormone oestrogen after menopause severe coughing associated with conditions such as chronic bronchitis or asthma fibroids in rare cases, pelvic tumour.

Treatments for uterine prolapse Treatments for uterine prolapse include surgical and non-surgical options, the choice of which will depend on general health, the severity of the condition and plans for a future pregnancy. Treatment options include: pelvic floor exercises vaginal pessary vaginal surgery. Pelvic floor exercises Stage I and II uterine prolapse in particular can be helped by pelvic floor muscle exercises, but they need to be done correctly and practised long enough to strengthen the muscles.

To identify your pelvic floor muscles, try the following: Insert one or two fingers into the vagina and try to squeeze them. Imagine you are passing urine, and try to stop the flow midstream do not do this while urinating.

Squeeze the muscles inside the anus as if you are trying to stop yourself from breaking wind. Pelvic organ prolapse, like a hernia, is the abnormal protrusion of an organ through a weak pelvic floor.

Hernias in the pelvic floor are technically more difficult to repair than other hernias because pressure in the pelvic floor from daily activities puts a lot of stress on the surgical repair.

As a consequence, some women have a persistence or recurrence of their prolapse after surgery. It is important to have realistic expectations: some patients cannot be cured. Surgery may result in fewer symptoms, but all of your symptoms may not be relieved. Sometimes surgery for pelvic organ prolapse fails to relieve any symptoms. Discuss the success rates of your particular procedure, or combination of procedures, with your surgeon. You will often be able to go home the same day after surgery.

Depending on the extent of your surgery, you may need to be admitted to the hospital, which would typically be a stay of one, or perhaps rarely two days. Many women have difficulty urinating immediately after the surgery and have to go home with a catheter in place or opt to learn to self-catheterize to drain the bladder. Catheterization is usually only necessary for 3 to 7 days. Many patients require at least some prescription strength pain medicine for a brief period after surgery.

This means no lifting more than pounds the weight of a two-liter bottle of soda , no intercourse, nothing in the vagina, and no exercise other than walking unless otherwise instructed. The amount of time necessary for you to "bounce back" from surgery has a lot to do with the route of surgery. In other words, if an abdominal incision is necessary to perform your operation, you will probably have more pain after surgery than if your procedure is performed through a laparoscope or through the vagina.

However, some patients are not good candidates for the vaginal or laparoscopic approaches. Even if your surgery is performed via a less invasive route, prolapse operations tend to be "major surgery. A pessary is a silicone device that can be used to help support prolapse. It is used for women who do not want surgery. Pessaries come in different shapes and sizes and can be fitted to help women with different degrees and types of prolapse. Pessaries are safe to use and are latex free.

Once you decide that you would like to try a pessary, you will be fitted for the correct size and shape to help support the prolapse without causing any discomfort or pain.

The pessary that fits best will be able to support the prolapse, feel comfortable and allow you to urinate and have bowel movements without difficulty. Normally, the pelvic organs—the bladder, uterus, vagina, and rectum—are supported and held in place by a group of muscles and tissues called the pelvic floor. When these muscles weaken over time, the pelvic organs can droop down and bulge out of the vagina.

In addition to the sensation of feeling an uncomfortable bulge in the vagina, you can experience symptoms such as. In pelvic organ prolapse, the pelvic floor muscles weaken, causing one or more of the pelvic organs to fall downward into or out of the vagina.

Most of the time, pelvic organ prolapse is the result of carrying—and vaginally delivering—children, which weakens the pelvic floor. Getting older, being overweight, and having a condition that involves frequent coughing which increases pressure in the abdomen and pelvis also make a woman vulnerable to prolapse. If you have pelvic organ prolapse, you'll notice a bulge at the opening of the vagina. The bulge isn't dangerous, but it can be very uncomfortable.

When the prolapse pulls the bladder downward, it bends the ureter the tube through which urine exits the body. As a result, you might have trouble urinating fully. Wakamatsu says. Likewise, if the prolapse pulls the rectum downward, it can cause constipation. As embarrassing as pelvic organ prolapse can be to talk about, it's something you need to discuss with your primary care physician or gynecologist.

Letting it go can leave urine in your bladder, which can lead to urinary tract infections. The first treatment your doctor might recommend is pelvic floor physical therapy, which may include Kegel exercises.