Women's Health

Good question. The terms tubal ligation, tubes tied, tubal sterilization, and female sterilization can all be used interchangeably to describe the same process. In the U.S., up to one third of women use sterili... continue reading  about  How likely is it for a woman to get pregnant after having her tubes tied?

You can get pregnant only around the time of ovulation, which for most women with regular 28-day cycles corresponds to days 12-16. So if your period comes at the expected time and is normal in terms of flow, it... continue reading  about  I've heard that you can't get pregnant during your period. Is this just an old wives tale? Should I be concerned about protection during this time?

Urinary incontinence is a common condition affecting 30-50 percent of women. The number of women affected by urinary incontinence increases with age but it should not be considered acceptable at any age. It is ... continue reading  about  How can a woman know when it's time to consider surgery for urinary incontinence?

It is unusual for hot flashes to persist with this severity for 20 years. Older women can still have them but they usually get less intense. Many anti-depressants are being used as an alternative to estrogen fo... continue reading  about  I'm 63 and have had hot flashes for the last 20 years. I still have all my 'parts' and don't take hormones. I suffer from severe depression and take anti-depressants. Is there anything I can do? Can this be thyroid related? Should I move to Alaska?

The type of surgery you had is a supracervical hysterectomy. If your ovaries are still functioning, then you are still having monthly ovulatory cycles. The monthly cycle causes bleeding from the endometrial tis... continue reading  about  I had a hysterectomy in June. I still have my tubes and ovaries and a small bit of cervix. Why and how am I still having full periods every month? Where is this blood coming from?

Yes. Your symptoms could well be associated with perimenopause. The World Health Organization has defined perimenopause as the time period 2 to 8 years prior to menopause as well as the year after cessation of ... continue reading  about  Now that I'm 50+, I've been getting severe headaches with my periods, and it also seems like my nasal allergy symptoms are worse at those times. Is this just a coincidence, or is this associated with perimenopause?

Prolapse of the pelvic organs should not be something that slows you down. In many cases relief can be obtained with a simple, noninvasive treatment called a pessary. A pessary is a silicon or rubber device tha... continue reading  about  I have prolapse that is made worse when I run. Running is something I need to be able to do, so what would you recommend? I've heard about pessaries - what are they?

Most of the studies on the use of fertility drugs have examined hormonally sensitive tumors such as breast, ovarian and uterine malignancies. There does not appear to be any association between fertility drugs ... continue reading  about  Is a woman undergoing fertility treatments at higher risk of getting cancer than a woman of the same age who has not taken these drugs?

Menopause can cause exacerbation of different symptoms for different women. Though there is no direct medical connection with vertigo and menopause, it is possible that there is some effect of hormonal fluctuat... continue reading  about  Is vertigo tied to menopause? Also, I'm taking 1000 mcg of biotin for my hair and nails and noticing that I have more intense hot flashes. Does biotin increase hot flashes?