WOMENS-HEALTH Messages for August, 2000: Re: aching in lower abdominal area- any thoughts from doctors too please!

Re: aching in lower abdominal area- any thoughts from doctors too please!

From: Patti Tessler, Family Nurse Practitioner (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Wed, 30 Aug 2000 14:52:16 -0500 (CDT)

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In reply to: Angellica: "aching in lower abdominal area- any thoughts from doctors too please!"

At Wed, 2 Aug 2000, Angellica wrote: >
>I suppose I should start with background information. I'm 15. Six
>months ago my boyfriend and I had sex (both of our first time).<snip> A couple weeks ago the pains started and got worse. Then
>they subsided a little and now they're back. It's an aching feeling. I
>know it's not cramps. I can feel the difference. And the meds I take
>for cramps don't seem to help the aching much. I have never gone to a
>gynocologist. Maybe I need to. <snip>

I'm not sure if anyone answered your question...it looks like it slipped through the cracks. But I hope you've gotten a gyn exam since you wrote.

I'm making an assumption here, so please forgive me if I'm wrong, but I suspect that your PA is unaware that you've become sexually active, and that if s/he had known, s/he might have done a gynecologic exam to rule out any problems.

Perhaps this doesn't apply to you, but it's not uncommon for a patient to withhold information like sexual activity or a new sexual partner. The patient sometimes assumes that if there was really a problem or a worry, their health care provider would ask them the question or figure it out during the exam. However, the interview is the most important part of the visit in most cases, and withholding information because of embarrassment or lack of privacy can prevent a good exam and diagnosis. If this paragraph doesn't apply to your situation, please forgive my presumptuousness.

In any case, a gynecological exam is important for any woman who is sexually active, and I urge you to make an appointment today for an exam, including Pap smear, pelvic exam, and tests for chlamydia and gonorrhea.

It's a wonderful health move to decide to abstain from intercourse at this time, and I congratulate you and your partner on this decision. But please remember that HPV (the virus that causes genital warts) and HSV (the virus that causes herpes) can be spread through sexual contact even if one is not having intercourse. Abstinence is safest. There is no commercially available test to determine if a person is free from HPV or HSV, and it's possible to spread the herpes virus from a cold sore to genitals, so one cannot be reassured by a partner's statement that "I've tested negative for everything," or "I was a virgin before you."

I hope you're feeling better. Please write on the forum again if you have more questions.

--
Patti Tessler, BSN, MSN, RN, CS
Family Nurse Practitioner

Next message: Sandy: "Re: what causes abnormal bleeding?"
Previous message: anonymous@obgyn.net: "Ureaplasma, Mycoplasma Hominis and Gardnerell."
In reply to: Angellica: "aching in lower abdominal area- any thoughts from doctors too please!"

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