Dr. N Hephzibah Kirubamani

Amenorrhea is the medical condition wherein a woman misses the menstrual periods. Girls aged 15 or more who have not yet started menstruating are at the maximum risk of this condition. The most common cause of amenorrhea is pregnancy. Other causes of amenorrhea include problems concerning the reproductive organs or glands that help to regulate hormone levels. Treatment of the underlying conditions often resolves amenorrhea.

Some of the main causes and solutions of amenorrhea are:

1. Dieting: In some women, dieting may cause amenorrhea. This is reversible, simply by eating a balanced diet.
2. Anorexia: Women who suffer from anorexia nervosa are highly likely to suffer from amenorrhea. In this case too, the only solution is to eat a healthy balanced diet.
3. Obesity: In some women, being overweight can cause amenorrhea. They should restrict the amount of fat consumed and should exercise daily to maintain an ideal body weight.
4. Vigourous Exercise: However, extreme exercise is also a cause of amenorrhea. More than 8 hours of vigorous workout, in a week, for a prolonged period of time, can cause amenorrhea. Try to strike a balance between the right kind of exercises and the time devoted to them.
5. Emotional stress: Excessive stress can often cause normal menstrual cycles to be disrupted. This can be cured by simply dealing with the cause of stress. Once stress levels come down to normal, so will menstruation.
6. Addiction: Excessive consumption of alcohol or smoking of cigarettes can also cause amenorrhea. Maintaining a safe distance from all such intoxicants is advised.

Once the cause of amenorrhea is determined, treatment is directed at correcting the underlying disease, which should restore normal menstruation. In case of any anatomical abnormalities of the genital tract, surgery may be advised. Treatment with medications such as dopamine agonists, Glucophage or oral contraceptives is also helpful. Hormone replacement therapies are used in those cases wherein a lack of estrogen is the cause behind it.

A word of caution
While many individuals and companies have marketed herbal therapies as a successful treatment for amenorrhea, none of these have been conclusively proven to be of help. In fact, some of these have been associated with serious and even fatal side effects, though in rare cases. Some preparations have been found to contain high levels of toxins. Before deciding to take a natural or an alternative remedy for amenorrhea, it is best to seek the advice of a healthcare practitioner.

Amenorrhea is very easily avoidable by eating healthy and balanced diets, exercising moderately, maintaining ideal body weight and avoiding excessive alcohol consumption and smoking. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Nose polyps are swellings on the fleshy part, that tends to develop in the lining of the nose and paranasal sinuses, which are the spaces filled by air and linked to the nasal cavity. These growths are non-cancerous in nature. Polyps can be of different sizes and could be either pink or yellowish-brown in colour with the shape of teardrops. Polyp may arise and grow in one or both the nostrils at the same time. They can grow in clusters.

Polyps which grow on to become large or those occurring in clusters can result in breathing problems and can hamper a patient’s ability to smell. Sinuses could get blocked and certain problems might emerge, like regular infections.

These nose polyps cause problems to around 40% of the general population and these are more common in among males, affecting them at least 2 times more than they do to women.

Individuals, who suffer from asthma, sinus infections on a frequent basis and allergies are more prone to developing this problem.

Symptoms
People suffer from chronic inflammation in the lining of the nasal passages and sinus. There could be obstruction in the nasal passages and sinuses as a result of clusters. Some people having small polys in their nose may not have any signs or symptoms. If the symptoms do arise, then they include:

1. A patient might feel as if they always have cold, due to runny nose.
2. There could be problem in breathing as the nose tends to remained stuffed or blocked, causing difficulty while sleeping.
3. A feeling wherein mucus seemed to continuously run down the back of the throat.
4. Snoring is also one of the symptoms.
5. Itchy feeling around the eyes.
6. Person with nose polyp can have obstructive sleep apnea in severe situations. This can be potentially serious, where a patien’s breathing stops while at sleep.
7. There could be double vision, especially if a patient has cystic fibrosis.

Causes
The actual causes of nasal poly are not known but a number of these cases are linked to non-allergic asthma.

The exact mechanism of polyp formation remains unknown but medical researchers believe that they appear from swelling in the nose or sinuses.

Some are of the opinion that inflammation is caused due to accumulation of fluid in the space between the cells of the nose and sinuses that form mucus. Ultimately these heavy cells are pulled down by gravity, resulting in polyps.

Scientists feel that bacteria or viral infection, any allergy or immune response to fungus are the possible triggers.

Treatment
Some of the commonly used treatment methods for nasal polyps are:

1. Steroids – A doctor can prescribe nose drops or a steroid spray, which would help shrink the polyps by reducing the inflammation. This is common for those patients with few small polyps.
2. Steroid Tablets – In severe cases, patient might be given steroid tablets, which could be taken on their own or through nasal spray. They are very effective in shrinking the polyps.
3. Surgery – If the polyps are large in size, then surgery is the only option available or it could also be undertaken if the patient does not show improvements through other modes of treatment.