What is an ovarian cyst

What is an ovarian cyst?

Ovarian cysts have no obvious clinical manifestations in the early stages, and patients often discover other diseases during gynecological examinations. As the tumor grows, patients will experience symptoms and signs depending on the nature, size, development, secondary degeneration or complications of the tumor.

1. Discomfort in the lower abdomen

Due to the weight of the tumor itself and the influence of intestinal peristalsis and posture changes, the tumor moves in the pelvic cavity, involving its pedicle and pelvic infundibulum ligament, causing distension and descent of the lower abdomen or fossa.

2. Increased abdominal circumference and swollen abdomen

This is the most common phenomenon in the main complaint. The patient will only notice the enlargement of the abdomen when he realizes that his clothes or belt seem tight, or he will feel it accidentally in the morning. He presses on the abdomen and finds swelling and abdominal distension discomfort.

3. Abdominal pain

For example, the tumors have no complications and pain is rare. Patients with ovarian tumors may experience abdominal pain, especially when it occurs suddenly, which is often caused by torsion of the tumor pedicle, occasionally tumor rupture, bleeding, or infection. Malignant cysts cause mainly abdominal and leg pain. Pain often causes patients to go to the emergency department.

4. Menstrual disorders

Generally, ovarian, or even bilateral ovarian cysts, do not cause menstrual disorders because they do not destroy all normal ovarian tissues. Some uterine bleeding is not endocrine, or it may be due to ovarian tumors changing the pelvic blood vessel distribution, causing endometrial congestion; or it may be due to ovarian malignant tumors directly metastasizing to the endometrium, causing menstrual disorders due to other secretory influences.

5. Compression symptoms

Large ovarian tumors can cause dyspnea and palpitations, and large amounts of ascites can also cause these symptoms; but in some patients with ovarian tumors, dyspnea is caused by effusion in one or both sides of the chest; it is usually combined with ascites to form the so-called Meigs syndrome.