Oligomenorrhoea:

• Periods occurring infrequently, with time between periods varying from 35 days to 6 months.
• It’s common for periods to be light and widely spaced when you first start having periods.
• Periods also become more irregular as you get older and near the menopause.

What else can cause irregular periods?

• The commonest cause of infrequent periods is a condition called polycystic ovaries (PCOS).
• Women with PCOS have a large number of very small (less than 1cm) cysts on their ovaries and a hormone imbalance. The cysts interfere with regular ovulation and so periods are infrequent.
• PCOS is a common condition that affects as many as 10 per cent of women.

Definition

• At some time in your reproductive life, you’ve probably experienced heavy bleeding during your menstrual period. If you’re like some women, you have heavy periods almost every cycle. Menorrhagia is the medical term for excessive or prolonged menstrual bleeding — and for periods that are both heavy and prolonged. The condition is also known as hypermenorrhea.
• The menstrual cycle isn’t the same for every woman. Normal menstrual flow occurs every 21 to 35 days lasts four to five days and produces a total blood loss of 30 to
• 40 mille litters (about 2 to 3 tablespoons). Your period may be regular or irregular, light or heavy, painful or pain-free, long or short and still be considered normal. Menorrhagia refers to losing 80 mille litters or more of blood during your menstrual cycle.
• Although heavy menstrual bleeding is a common concern among pre menopausal women, few women experience blood loss severe enough to be defined as Menorrhagia.
• Treatments and self-care steps may help you.

• The signs and symptoms of Menorrhagia may include:
• Menstrual flow that soaks through one or more sanitary pads or tampons every hour for several consecutive hours
• The need to use double sanitary protection to control your menstrual flow
• The need to change sanitary protection during the night
• Menstrual periods lasting longer than seven days
• Menstrual flow that includes large blood clots
• Heavy menstrual flow that interferes with your regular lifestyle
• Constant pain in your lower abdomen during menstrual periods
• Tiredness, fatigue or shortness of breath (symptoms of anaemia)

Metrorrhagia: (Bleeding Between Menstrual Periods)

• Bleeding from the uterus between menstrual periods is called metrorrhagia. This is a common problem, especially for teenagers and women nearing menopause.
• Definition- If by the age of 16 years menses do not begin than we call it a case of Primary Amenorrhoea and a gynaecologist needs to be consulted.
• Common Causes: – Delayed Puberty: Some girls just take little more time to mature and get delayed onset of menses. It may be considered normal if the menses start Upto 18years. Otherwise the body changes start appearing like growth spurt, breast development and genital hair.
• Sometime very low weight or dietary deficiencies are also responsible for such delay. Just
• waiting and improvement in general health status helps in starting the menstruation.

Amenorrhoea:

• Amenorrhoea is the absence of a menstrual period.
• Primary amenorrhoea is when a young woman has not yet had a period by age 16.
• Secondary amenorrhoea describes someone who used to have a regular period but then it stopped for at least three months (this can include pregnancy).

What are the signs of amenorrhoea?

• The main sign of  amenorrhoea is missing a menstrual period.
• Regular periods are a sign of overall good health. Missing a period may mean that you are pregnant or that something is going wrong. It’s important to tell your health care provider if you miss a period so he or she can begin to find out what is happening in your body.
• Amenorrhoea itself is not a disease, but is usually a symptom of another condition. Depending on that condition, a woman might experience other symptoms, such as headache, vision changes, hair loss, or excess facial hair.