Why do women get cervical erosion? Revealing the real cause of cervical erosion

Erosion, these two words are scary, they easily remind people of decay. "Cervical erosion" seems to be a part of the female reproductive organ eroding, how scary. In addition, some people with ulterior motives inappropriately link "cervical erosion" with "cervical cancer", which is really creepy and unsettling.

In order to understand what cervical erosion is, we have to start from the beginning.

The female reproductive tract is divided into two parts, the upper reproductive tract includes the fallopian tubes and the uterine body, and the lower reproductive tract refers to the vagina. The vulva is an external genital organ, but not a cavity. The ovaries are gonads and do not belong to the reproductive tract. The cervix is ​​located between the uterine body and the vagina, and part of it protrudes at the top of the vagina. It is a very important structure. Its importance lies in separating the sterile lower reproductive tract from the sterile upper reproductive tract. Another important function is that after conception, the embryo can stay safely in the uterine cavity and grow without "falling out", but once the fetus matures, the "door" can be opened in time, so the fetus can "stay and come out" in the uterine cavity. The cervix, as a "gatekeeper", has made an indispensable contribution.

The upper and lower female reproductive tracts are both cavities, and both have "linings", which are epithelium. The epithelium in different parts has different shapes and functions. The epithelium of the fallopian tubes has cilia, which can help transport eggs, sperm and fertilized eggs. The epithelium of the uterus (endometrium) changes periodically, and when pregnancy does not occur, it sheds once a month, which becomes menstruation. Some primates also have menstruation, while dogs and cats have no menstruation or have a small amount of menstruation. The uterine epithelium has glands and is rich in glycogen. The purpose is to absorb nutrients for the fertilized egg after implantation. The epithelium in the cervical canal secretes mucus and has immune function. Sperm can pass through freely, but bacteria in the vagina cannot pass through, which separates the contaminated vaginal cavity from the sterile uterine cavity. The epithelium of the above cavities has only one layer (single layer), while the epithelium of the vagina and the vaginal part of the cervix has evolved into more than ten layers according to the needs of sexual intercourse function. It is fish-scale-like under a microscope, so it is called squamous epithelium.

What is erosion? Erosion is the loss of epithelium. However, "cervical erosion" does not mean the loss of epithelium. It is just that the single-layer (columnar) epithelium in the cervical canal moves outward and replaces the squamous epithelium. The squamous epithelium is a stratified layer, and the capillaries below it (the capillaries are filled with red blood) are pink in color, while the capillaries below the single-layer (columnar) epithelium are red, so the red area seen by the naked eye is the "erosion" area. The real cause of erosion is related to endocrine. It is mainly sex hormones that cause the single-layer columnar epithelium of the cervical canal to grow outward, forming an "erosion" area.

A large amount of research data shows that when a female fetus is in the mother's womb, her cervix is ​​"eroded". This is the result of the mother's sex hormones acting on the fetus' cervix. The cervix of elderly women is smooth in appearance and not "eroded". This is because the ovarian function of elderly women has subsided and the sex hormone level is very low. Therefore, cervical "erosion" in women of childbearing age is a physiological phenomenon. If there is no infection, it does not need to be treated.

Under physiological conditions, there is a kind of bacteria in the female reproductive tract (vagina) that creates a good ecological environment - lactobacillus. Lactobacillus digests glycogen in squamous epithelial cells to form lactic acid, so the pH of the vaginal environment is equal to 4-4.5. There are many bacteria that coexist peacefully with lactobacillus, but they do not pose a threat to the columnar epithelium in the cervical erosion area. Because the vaginal pH (pH) = 4-4.5, bacteria with low pathogenicity are not easy to grow, which is called vaginal self-cleaning. Its self-cleaning ability, in theory, can eliminate general invading bacteria within about 24 hours.

If the above-mentioned vaginal ecological environment is destroyed, for example, the lactobacillus is "eaten" by a certain bacteriophage (there can be lactobacillus phage in the male urogenital system), it will cause environmental damage and the growth of miscellaneous bacteria, posing a threat to the single-layer columnar epithelium in the erosion area with low resistance, resulting in inflammation, which is cervicitis. Cervical erosion and cervicitis are two different concepts.

Some bacteria are very aggressive, such as gonorrhea and chlamydia. They often work together to attack columnar epithelium. More than 50% of acute purulent cervicitis is caused by them. Acute cervicitis should be treated with medication, usually oral medication. Of course, there are also injectable medications, and usually no "drip injection" is needed. If acute cervicitis is not treated in time and thoroughly, it will become chronic cervicitis. Severe chronic cervicitis affects women's health and should be treated actively.