Introduction
Gynecology is the branch that deals with the reproductive system of women. It involves the treatment of women’s diseases, especially those related to reproductive organs. It includes the vagina, uterus, vulva, and ovaries. The branch also involves diagnosing and treating reproductive system disorders and diseases. Some common diseases or pathologies related to gynecology are endometriosis, infertility, ovarian cysts, and pelvic pain. Sometimes, these pathologies in gynecology are misunderstood by other pathologies because they mimic their symptoms when viewed by the doctor, which confuses them. This topic describes gynecological pathomimesis, and its links with gynecological pathologies with a few examples.
What Does Gynecological Pathomimesis Mean?
Gynecological pathomimesis are the pathologies that mimic pathologies that are present in the female reproductive system, but they are not the actual pathology on diagnosing. Although these pathologies have different sites and causes of formations, they still show similarities in symptoms or sites they occur. Endometriosis is one common gynecological pathomimesis that is confused with inflammatory bowel disease. They have different sites and causes but still show similarities in their clinical, surgical, and pathological findings. Gynecological pathomimesis is not a gynecological pathology. They instead appear as similar may in symptoms or other ways to define it as gynecological pathomimesis.
How Are Gynecologic Pathologies Confused With Other Pathologies?
Sometimes, the pathologies are confused or misunderstood due to their similar appearances or symptoms. As the patient presents the symptoms differently which makes the doctor leads to a differential diagnosis. Then, the doctor usually uses some diagnostic imaging, like laparoscopy, to clear the misunderstood pathology. For example, in a case, a retroperitoneal tumor was confused with gynecological pathology as the patient showed symptoms like pelvic pains and dyspareunia, which are pains in the genitals that can originate before or after intercourse. The doctor took the case as gynecologic pathology in the vagina, but the diagnostic images cleared it to be a retroperitoneal mass or tumor. The doctor must perform a few diagnostic tests to identify the pathology. Some diagnostic means are laparoscopy, ultrasound, and biopsy of the associated pathology. Or even the doctor can go for the other standards according to associated like the differential diagnosis of the pathology. If cases of inflammatory bowel disease are seen, a colonoscopy can also be performed.
What Are the Examples of Gynecologic Pathomimesis?
Some examples of gynecologic pathomimesis are:
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Inflammatory Bowel Disease Mimics Gynecological Disorders: Inflammatory bowel disease contains two main conditions Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Inflammatory bowel disease has symptoms like diarrhea, abdominal pain, weight loss, rectal bleeding, and fatigue. Crohn’s disease can be mimicked with endometriosis as a gynecological disorder. Endometriosis is a condition in which the lining of the uterus, called endometrium, starts growing outside the uterus, and it can involve the pelvic tissues along with it, which includes the ovaries, and affect the organs adjacent to it, like the bowel and bladder. It shows symptoms like diarrhea, fatigue, pain in the bowel, and bleeding between the menstrual periods. Crohn’s disease is a bowel disease that affects the inner lining of the digestive tract with symptoms like abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, diarrhea, and constipation (bowel obstruction).
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Polypoid Endometriosis That Mimics Ovarian Cancers: Polypoid endometriosis is a rare type of endometriosis. It usually occurs in postmenopausal women with the symptom of abnormal bleeding after menopause. It can be a benign tumor. Whereas ovarian malignancy or cancers are abnormal cancerous growth that begins in the ovaries, remains undetected for a long time, and is detected at later stages. After the diagnostic finding, it was clear that polypoid endometriosis was misunderstood as ovarian cancer.
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The Retroperitoneal Tumor Mimics the Gynecological Pathology: Retroperitoneal tumors are the masses that originate from retroperitoneal spaces. When present in female reproductive organs, these tumors can mimic gynecologic pathologies. The diagnostic finding should be done close enough to be precise about the pathology without misunderstanding it as any other pathology.
How Do These Pathologies Get Differentiation?
The gynecological pathologies get differentiation on getting diagnosis through different means. Diagnostic findings include laparoscopy, computerized tomography (CT), MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), a transvaginal ultrasound, and biopsy. Various methods are used to find the differential diagnosis of the pathology defined by the doctor, as the symptoms can be similar. Still, they should be distinct from other pathologies. Hence, diagnostic imaging can clarify the pathologies that mimic gynecologic pathologies.
Are These Pathologies Treated the Same Way As the Other Pathologies?
The treatment of the gynecologic pathomimesis depends upon the pathology defined. The treatment of ovarian cancer can be laparotomy or hysterectomy, and in cases of endometriosis can be laparoscopic surgery or hysterectomy along with medication therapy. So, different pathologies on diagnosis are treated differently by doctors.
What Is the Relation Between Gynecologic Pathologies and Gynecologic Pathomimesis?
Gynecological pathologies are diseases related to the female reproductive organs, and gynecological pathomimesis are pathologies that mimic the disorders or conditions of the female reproductive organs. Originally the pathomimesis are not the gynecology pathologies, but they can be defined as the differential diagnosis of the pathologies with whom they mimic. So, it is very important to closely observe the pathology before treating the patient.
Conclusion
Gynecologic pathomimesis are the pathologies that mimic other pathologies. For example, retroperitoneal tumors can be confused with gynecological pathology (any abnormal mass present in the female reproductive organ). The doctor has to go for the diagnostic findings to diagnose the pathology, as some pathologies can be confused due to similar symptoms. Even the location of the pathology is only thoroughly evaluated after the proper close diagnostic method. Pathomimesis in gynecology can be very common, but the doctor should closely observe it before diagnosing the patient. Here are a few examples of gynecologic pathomimesis inflammatory bowel disease that mimics gynecological pathologies, polypoid endometriosis that mimics ovarian cancers, and retroperitoneal tumors that mimic gynecological tumors. In these examples, we can see that all have different sites and origins, but these can mimic very well the gynecological pathologies. As inflammatory bowel disease is linked to gastroenterology, retroperitoneal tumors are associated with retroperitoneal spaces.
