Menorrhagia is a term for very heavy bleeding during a period or a period that lasts longer than normal. These days, doctors are more likely to call it heavy menstrual bleeding. Typical symptoms include bleeding for more than 7 days, needing to change your pad or tampon every hour for many hours at a time, or passing large clots.
If the bleeding during your period keeps you from doing normal activities, that’s not typical. Doctors can help treat your menorrhagia so you have a more manageable menstrual cycle. Here’s what you need to know.
More About Menorrhagia
Menorrhagia is different from unexpected bleeding between periods, or period bleeding that comes earlier or later in your cycle than expected. Doctors call that abnormal uterine bleeding or irregular menstrual bleeding.
Anemia is the main health risk linked to menorrhagia. It’s caused by the loss of too much blood. It happens when you don’t have enough red blood cells to carry oxygen to your tissues. Anemia can be life-threatening if you don’t treat it. Menorrhagia can also trigger severe cramping and pain.
Finding out if you have menorrhagia can be tricky because periods are different for everyone. Your light days may equal someone else’s heaviest flow. But bleeding during your period usually lasts 4 to 5 days and you lose about 2 to 3 tablespoons of blood. When you have menorrhagia, you bleed much more and for much longer.
Who Gets Menorrhagia?
Heavy bleeding is one of the most common problems people who have periods report to their doctors. Out of all the people who menstruate, about 27% to 54% deal with heavy bleeding. It affects more than 10 million Americans each year. This means that about 1 out of every 5 people with periods have it.
Your risk of getting menorrhagia changes depending on your age and the medical conditions you have. Your body releases progesterone in response to your ovaries releasing an egg. Progesterone is a hormone that helps keep your periods regular. If you don’t release an egg, your progesterone levels don’t go up, and you may have heavy bleeding.
You’re most likely to have cycles without an egg release in the year after your first period or in your teenage years.
Causes of Menorrhagia
Certain medical problems can lead to heavy bleeding during periods. Some are problems of the uterus, and others are other medical conditions. These include:
Hormone imbalance. During a normal period, estrogen and progesterone work together to help build the lining of your uterus (endometrium). If the amount of either hormone is out of balance, your uterine lining gets too thick and causes heavy bleeding when it sheds. You may deal with a hormone imbalance if you are obese, have an insulin resistance, a thyroid problem, or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Noncancerous growths in your uterus. Some conditions can make the cells in your uterus grow abnormally and cause growths. These include polyps, fibroids, and adenomyosis, a condition where tissue grows into the wall of your uterus and makes it thicken.
Cancer. Uterine and cervical cancers can cause heavy menstrual bleeding. Conditions that raise your risk of cancer can also cause it, including endometrial hyperplasia, a condition that thickens your uterine lining.
Bleeding disorders. Certain disorders that affect bleeding, such as a platelet disorder or von Willebrand disease (which keeps your blood from clotting), can make you have heavier- than-usual periods.
Infection. Some Infections, including sexually transmitted infections (STIs), can cause heavy bleeding, including trichomoniasis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia.
Complications during or after pregnancy. If you have one standalone heavy bleeding cycle, it could be the result of a miscarriage. In some pregnancies, the placenta is too low or covering the opening of the uterus (cervix) and can cause bright red bleeding during pregnancy. If you’ve had a baby via C-section, it’s possible that scarring in the uterus can collect blood and cause menorrhagia.
IUDs. An intrauterine device (IUD) is a device a doctor puts into your uterus to prevent pregnancy. A common side effect of hormone-free IUDs is periods that are heavier than usual.
Medications. Certain medications can change your menstrual cycle. These may be hormone-related medications such as birth control pills that have estrogen and progestin, or they may be medications that prevent blood clots, also called anticoagulants or blood thinners.
Other medical conditions. In some cases, liver, kidney, or thyroid disease can cause heavy period bleeding.
Show Sources
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SOURCES:
Cleveland Clinic: “Heavy Menstrual Bleeding (Menorrhagia).”
Mayo Clinic: “Heavy Menstrual Bleeding.”
CDC: “Heavy Menstrual Bleeding.”
Johns Hopkins Medicine: “Menorrhagia.”
