Ectropion Cervix

Hi Doctor....I attached  your response from a few months ago so that you have the background info. I finally saw my specialist, she diagnosed me with an ectropion cervix. She said my cerivx looked like a strawberry (it also felt sore when it was touched). This would explain all the blood after sex.  I forgot to ask her some questions about it and hiope you can. How does one have this condition? I have had 3 children and had been off the pill for only 6 months when this started. Can it go away on it's own? I was told that only cauterizing would help stop the bleeding, it would be day surgery but she said I would have to be put under general. After having had recent heart surgery for my ASD closure I want to avoid any surgery. Is there anything else that could be done?  She said that menopause evenually helps, but I am only 35 yrs old and can't imagine dealing with blood after sex all the time. There have been times, even weeks where there is no bleeding after sex, why would that be? Do you agree with this diagnoses based on the info presented? My pap was normal in January 2010 and my u/s must have been normal. Thank you.
February 2009. ...Doctor's Answer by Elaine Brown, MD, Dec 29, 2009 09:44AM
To: lifebuilderHI!
I'm sorry to take so long to reply--I actually did reply almost two weeks ago, but the connection must have failed because I see its not here--again, sorry! By now, you have probably seen your MD and have some answers. If you were my patient, I would first do a pelvic exam and pap smear.  I would especially be looking for a polyp on the cervix.  I think that is much more likely ( and benign ) than abnormal cervical cells.  I would also do a pap of course. And a pregnancy test (I ALWAYS do that even after vas ).  I would then do cultures and a wet mount to rule out infection in the cervix--such as yeast, BV, etc.


If all of the above was normal/negative, I would probably suggest 10-14 days of progesterone therapy and observation.

[Elaine Brown, MD]

Hi!
A couple of things:
The condition can go away on its own.  Stopping the pill may very well help, as taking the pill may worsen it--just make sure that you use something else for birth control unless you want another pregnancy!  I think that since you have long periods of time without bleeding, it would be reasonable to take a wait and see approach.

Also, there is a procedure called cryotherapy that can be done in the office that can also reduce the ectropion.  If you were my patient, I would probably try to talk you out of having this procedure done unless you also had some abnormal cells on your pap.

I would probably also try a short course of antibiotics followed by an antifungal medication before going to surgery--just to see if it helped.


The best news is, that if your doctor is correct ( I assume so ) you don't have anything serious, and nothing needs to be done immediately!

Hope this helps!
Dr B