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Menstruation - absent

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Definition:

The absence of menstruation means no menstrual flow. Absent menstruation may be primary (no menstruation before age 16) or secondary (menstruation begins at the appropriate age, but later stops for more than 3 cycles or 6 months).

Absent menstruation is called amenorrhea.

Alternative Names:

Missed periods; Lack of menses; Periods - missed; Amenorrhea

Considerations:

Many perfectly normal females begin to menstruate later than most (the median age is 12.8).

Pregnancy is often the first thought when a period is missed, but there are many reasons for having a late period.

The incidence of primary amenorrhea in the United States is less than 1%. The incidence of secondary amenorrhea (due to some cause other than pregnancy) is about 4% in the general population.

Symptoms associated with amenorrhea depend on the cause and may include the following:

• Headache
• Galactorrhea (breasts produce milk in a woman who is not pregnant or breast-feeding an infant)
• Visual loss (in rare cases of pituitary tumor)
• Marked weight gain or weight loss
• Dry vagina
• Increased hair growth in a "male" pattern ( hirsutism )
• Voice changes
• Breast size changes

Common Causes:

Causes of primary amenorrhea:

• Delay may be normal if puberty characteristics, such as breat development, are present by age 13
• Birth defects of the female reproductive system
• Lack of an opening in the membrane at the entrance of the vagina (hymen)
• Problem with the hypothalamus gland

Factors that can disrupt normal menstruation include:

• Drastic weight reduction
• Eating disorders
• Stress

Causes of secondary amenorrhea:

• Pregnancy
• Stress and anxiety
• Drastic weight reduction
• Hormonal imbalance (such as with polycystic ovarian syndrome)
• Endocrine disorders such as thyroid disease or pituitary disease/tumor
• Other illness
• Excessive exercise
• Menopause (normal for women over age 45)
• Medications, including birth control pills and other contraceptives
• Uterine scarring, usually from procedures such as dilation and curettage ( D and C )

• Review Date: 6/6/2006
• Reviewed By: Audra Robertson, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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