Pelvic organ prolapse is extremely common but few are aware of it

Hi members of the Women's Health Community!

I'm connecting to you from the Urogynecology Community; this is one of the new communities on Medhelp. Pelvic organ prolapse is an extremely common female health issue that most women aren't aware of until after they are diagnosed with it. Many symptoms within the pelvic cavity overlap between different conditions; pelvic organ prolapse is one of those conditions. Childbirth is the leading cause of POP, menopause is the second leading cause. Half of women over the age of 50 have POP, many women in their 30's and up have problems as well.  Of course this does not mean that all women having problems in their pelvic cavities have POP, but since our areas overlap I think our communities will complement each other well. I am hopeful that if you have several of the symptoms of POP listed below, that you will dig into pelvic organ prolapse a bit to see if the shoe fits.

The most common symptoms of POP are:

Pressure in the vagina or rectum or both
Rectal pain
Urinary incontinence
Urine retention (you have to pee, it just won't come out)
Feels like your insides are falling out (you can see a bulge of tissue at end of vagina if you look with mirror)
Pelvic or abdominal pain or discomfort
Back pain
Heaviness in pelvic region
Constipation
Fecal incontinence
Tampons "push out"
Painful intercourse
Lack of sensation during sex.

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Urogynecology Community Leader
SherrieP