Normal menstruation

General or Other | Obstetrics and Gynaecology | Normal menstruation (Disease)


Description

Menstruation is a womans monthly bleeding, also called period. When menstruation is occurring, is shedding the lining of the uterus (womb). Menstrual blood flows from the uterus through the small opening in the neck of the uterus and leaves the body through the vagina.

Most menstrual periods last from three to five days. Menstruation is part of the menstrual cycle, which prepares the body for pregnancy each month. A cycle is counted from the first day of a period and the first day of the next period. The average menstrual cycle lasts 28 days. Cycles can vary from 21 to 35 days in adults and 21 to 45 days in adolescents.

Causes and Risk factors

Menstruation is a major stage of puberty in girls and is one of the many physical signs that a girl becoming a woman. And like many of the other changes associated with puberty, menstruation can be confusing for girls (and boys). Some girls can not wait to start their periods, while others may feel fear or anxiety.

In the first half of the cycle, levels of estrogen start to rise and make the lining of the uterus (womb) grow and thicken. At the same time, an egg (ovum) in one of the ovaries starts to mature. At about day 14 of a typical 28-day cycle, the egg leaves the ovary. This is called ovulation.

The menstrual cycle may be regular — about the same length every month — or somewhat irregular, and the period may be light or heavy, painful or pain-free, long or short, and still be considered normal. Within a broad range, normal is whats normal for every woman. ...