Ovarian Cysts Specialist

What are ovarian cysts?

Ovarian cysts are sacs filled with liquid or semisolid material. They form on or in your ovaries. Your ovaries are part of your reproductive system, making the hormones that control your menstrual cycle and holding and releasing eggs during ovulation.

The kinds of ovarian cysts are:

Functional cysts

Functional cysts are benign cysts that form during your menstrual cycle. These cysts usually shrink on their own within 1-2 menstrual cycles and don’t require treatment.

However, some functional cysts grow very large, causing the ovary to twist. 

Endometriomas

Endometriomas are cysts that show up in women with endometriosis. These cysts can affect your reproductive health.

Dermoids

Dermoids are ovarian cysts that develop from cells leftover from birth. These cysts generally don’t cause problems.

Cystadenomas

Cystadenomas are fluid-filled sacs that can grow large.

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) can develop many small cysts on their ovaries. These cysts can affect the health of the ovaries and lead to infertility.

What are the symptoms of ovarian cysts?

Small ovarian cysts generally cause no symptoms. But if you have a large ovarian cyst, you can experience:

• Pelvic pain
• Bloating
• Feeling of fullness in your lower abdomen
• Painful periods
• Pain during sex
• Need to urinate more often than usual

Ovarian cysts can rupture, causing severe pain and swelling. A ruptured cyst is a medical emergency. Call 911 or immediately go to the nearest hospital emergency room.

If your cyst causes the ovary to twist, you can experience pain, nausea, and vomiting.

How are ovarian cysts diagnosed?

Collaborative Women’s Care does an in-house ultrasound to diagnose ovarian cysts. Before the test, they review your symptoms, medical and gynecological histories, and do physical and pelvic exams.

Your provider might be able to feel your cyst during your physical. They do the ultrasound to confirm a diagnosis and determine where and how large your cyst is.

Your provider might also check your hormone levels to look for hormone-related problems, like PCOS, that could explain your ovarian cysts.

How are ovarian cysts treated?

How your ovarian cysts are treated will depend on what kind and how big they are. With small cysts that cause no symptoms, your provider at Collaborative Women’s Care could take a wait-and-see approach. They could also prescribe hormonal birth control to lower your risk of developing ovarian cysts.

If your ovarian cyst fails to go away after a few menstrual cycles, grows larger, causes pain, or looks unusual, Collaborative Women’s Care will probably recommend surgery to remove it.

Find out more about ovarian cysts and available treatments by calling Collaborative Women’s Care today or scheduling an appointment online.