Treatments

Treatments for Endometriosis

Treatment options include medicine, surgery or both. Whether you hope to become pregnant will play a role in your options. If symptoms are mild, you may only need pain medicine. In other cases, hormone-based medicine, such as birth control pills, will stop ovulation and slow endometriosis.

Several surgical options can be used to remove the implants. In some cases, physicians may be able to remove the growths through laparoscopy. In other cases, open surgery is needed. Removal of the uterus may also be necessary for some women.

Endometriosis can make it very hard or impossible for a woman to get pregnant. Sometimes surgery can help. But, in a few cases, women may remain infertile.

Aromatase inhibitors

Serdar E. Bulun, MD, is a world-renowned specialist in the use of aromatase inhibitors to treat women with endometriosis. Dr. Bulun is joined by a multidisciplinary team at the Women’s Health Center housed under Prentice Women’s Hospital at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Their team offers leading-edge diagnostic testing as well as personalized treatment plans for women with endometriosis and pelvic pain.

For more information regarding endometriosis and available treatments, please contact our women’s health specialists at Northwestern Medicine Prentice Women’s Hospital at 312.695.1414 or request a first-time appointment online.

Living with endometriosis

Simple steps can help ease the pain of endometriosis, including:

• Rest, relaxation and meditation
• Warm baths
• Prevent constipation
• Regular exercise
• Use of a hot water bottle or heating pad on your abdomen