Pain In Ovary: Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Located on each side of your pelvic region, ovaries play a crucial role in a female's reproductive system. They perform a dual-action of producing hormones which leads to menstruation and releasing at least one egg every month for fertilisation. But from time to time, there's a possibility that these ovaries can cause pain in your body.

Ovarian pain can be characterised in two forms namely, acute or chronic. The former pain is experienced for a short period of time whereas the latter ovarian pain starts gradually and sticks around for several months. It's seen that many women experience ovary pain before, after and during periods.

Understanding what causes pain in the ovary is quite essential to keep serious underlying diseases at bay. Thus, we did some searching and found some of the common reasons that cause pain in the ovary along with their symptoms and treatments. Let's have a look at it in depth.

• Ovarian Cysts
• Ovulation Pain
• Endometriosis
• Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)
• Ovarian Remnant Syndrome

Ovarian cysts are sacs filled with fluid, which tends to grow on the surface of your ovaries. These are quite common and often occur during the ovulation period. For the most part, they don't showcase any kind of symptoms. Although, there are chances that you might experience ovarian cyst pain after a large ovarian cysts ruptures.

Symptoms:

• Pain during bowel movements or intercourse
• Nausea or vomiting
• Breast tenderness
• Frequent urination

Treatment:

Usually, small ovarian cysts tend to dissolve on their own. So, the doctor might recommend you to wait and watch. But in case you experience sharp pain in the ovary, he might prescribe you birth control pills that would enable the cyst to shrink. The last resort is surgery which is performed to remove larger cysts.

Do you experience ovary pain before or after your periods, particularly during ovulation? If so, this pain is characterised as ovulation pain also called Mittelschmerz. It comes from two German words, 'middle' and 'pain'. This ovary pain causes a dull or severe ache on either side. As ovulation occurs in the middle of your menstrual cycle, on average, you might experience right or left side ovary pain on the 14th day of your cycle; depending on which side the eggs burst. Read more on ovulation pain.

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Symptoms:

• Mild twinge or severe discomfort
• Vaginal discharge
• Light vaginal bleeding
• Nausea

Treatment:

Ovulation pain tends to go away on its own. But a few women tend to take birth control pills to prevent the pain only after consulting a doctor.

Among the many ovary pain causes, endometriosis is the one that triggers mild to severe discomfort. Endometriosis is a condition wherein abnormal growth of tissues, similar to the endometrium that lines the uterus, grows outside the uterus. Usually, endometrium mimics the process of your menstrual cycle which means it grows before your period and sheds as your bleed. But in this condition, the abnormal growth of tissue gets trapped and leads to internal bleeding, scars tissue and severe ovary pain after periods.

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Symptoms:

• Excessive bleeding
• Pain during periods
• Pain during bowel movements
• Infertility

Treatment:

Depending on the severity of the condition, medicines and surgery are two options suggested by doctors.

Pelvic inflammatory disease is an infection caused in the uterus, ovaries or fallopian tubes. It's a result of a bacteria which is sexually transmitted by diseases like gonorrhoea or chlamydia. It is one of the common pelvic and ovary pain causes found in women. This cause overlaps with period pains. Thus, to get a clear idea, click here to learn what causes period pain.

Symptoms:

• Pain during intercourse
• Vaginal discharge that may have a smell
• Irregular menstrual bleeding
• Diarrhoea
• Fatigue
• Difficulty urinating
• Vomiting

Treatment:

To combat this disease, antibiotics are given to the patient. These drugs kill the bacteria causing the infection.

Ovarian remnant syndrome is experienced by women who have had their ovaries and uterus removed. When the procedure is performed and in case a small piece of the ovary is left behind, it can continue to counter and trigger the production of hormones. This can cause pain in the ovary on the left or right side, depending on where the remnant is present.

Symptoms:

• Pain while urinating
• Painful bowel movement
• Painful intercourse

Treatment:

Surgery called laparotomy or laparoscopy is performed to remove the remnant.

Apart from the above-given ovary pain causes, here are some other medical conditions that might play a part in the pain.

• Constipation
• Ectopic pregnancy
• Kidney stone
• Urinary tract infection (UTI)
• Appendicitis

If you experience mild pain in the ovary which comes and goes before, after or during your period, then there isn't much to stress about. But when this pain turns severe and brings other symptoms like fever, nausea or vomiting, you must consult a doctor immediately! Conditions like pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), endometriosis and ovarian cysts need to be treated in time. To make a better diagnosis apart from your symptoms, your doctor might run a few tests and ask you to take a pelvic exam.

Remember to keep a track of your symptoms and get yourself checked from time to time. Your health is everything, so make it your number one priority!

Questions like can I get pregnant before my period are common. Our article explains everything you need to know about fertility timing.

Depending on the size of the cyst, you would experience a dull or a sharp pain in either side of your pelvic region.

As your ovaries are located near the lower abdomen region, you would experience the pain under your belly or near your pelvic region.

Yes, it is normal to experience pain during ovulation. Though most women tend to not feel any pain while ovulating, it is normal for pain to occur during ovulation.

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