Reproductive Flashcards
Which factors affect transmission of genital infections?
- Age
- Ehtnicity
- Socioeconomic status
- Age at first sexual intercourse
- Number of partners
- Sexual orientation
- Condom use
- Menstrual cycle
What is the impact of stigma associated with STIs?
There is impact on health and well being of affected individuals and contacts
What are the general considerations made during diagnosis of STI?
- Could be symptomatic or asymptomatic
- Sexual history and physical examinations are essential
- Diagnostic samples need to be collected from the correct sites
- Every effort should be made to isolate/diagnose the offending organism
- Prompt treatment and partner notification
- Advice, counselling and education of the patient and contacts
What are the general principles of STI treatment?
- Treatment (antibiotics, antiviral, topical creams)
- Co-infections are common so screen for other STIs
- Contact tracing
- STI prevention
What causes chlamydia and what are the microbiolical features of it?
- Chlamydia trachomatis
- Obligate intra-cellular bacterium
What are the symptoms of chlamydia in males?
- Urethritis
- Dysuria
- Epididymitis
- Proctitis
- Prostatitis
What are the symptoms of chlamydia in females?
- Mostly asymptomatic
- Increased discharge
- Post coital and intermenstrual bleeds
- Dyspareunia
Apart from the genital tract, which regions can chlamydia trachomatis affect?
- Ocular inoculation that manifest as conjunctivitis
- Pharyngeal infection which is usually asymptomatic
What test are used to diagnose chlamydia in men?
- First catch urine NAAT
- Urethreal swabs - less acceptable
- Rectal and pharyngeal NAAT for extragenial sampling
What is used to treat chlamydia?
- Doxycycline or Azithromycin 1st line
- Erythromycin or Ofloxacin 2nd line
What is the cause of gonorrhoea and what are the microbiological features of it?
Neisseria Gonorrhoeae
-Gram negative intracellular diploccus
What are the primary sites of infection for neisseria Gonorrhoeae?
-Urethra, Endocervix, Rectum, Pharynx, and Conjunctiva
What are the main symptoms of Gonorrhoea in men?
- Urethral discharge
- Dysuria
- Anal discharge
What are the main symptoms of gonorhea in women?
- Asymptomatic in women in most cases
- Altered discharge
- Lower abdominal pain
Which investigations are undertaken in the diagnosis of Gonorhea?
- Microscopy of gram stained genital specimen in men more than women
- NAATS
- Cultures for confirmatory identification and antimicrobial testing
What is used in the treatment of gonorrhoea?
- Intramuscular Ceftriaxone plus oral azithromycin
- Spectinomycin as alternative in penicillin allergy
- Test of cure
- Partner Notification
Why is azithromycin used in combination with ceftriaxone?
- Shown to boost action of ceftriaxone
- Decreases chances of developing resistance to ceftriaxone
- People how have an STI have an increased change of co-infections. Azithromycin covers clamydia as a co-infection
What is the cause of herpes?
Herpes Simplex Virus
HSV 1 - oral-labial herpes
HSV 2 - primary, non-primary or recurrent infection
What are the symptoms of Herpes?
- Painful ulceration
- Dysuria
- Vaginal discharge
- Can be asymptomatic
What are the systemic features of Herpes?
- Fever
- Myalgia
What is used to diagnose HSV?
- Virus detection of vesicle fluid or ulcer base
- Type specific Serology
What is the treatment for Herpes?
- General advice
- Aciclovir
- Suppresive treatment for recurrent HSV
What is the recommendation give to patient with primary herpes in pregnancy?
-Caesarian section recommended
What is the organism that causes syphilis and what are its microbial features?
- Treponema pallium
- Spirochete bacterium
What is the pathophysiology of syphilis?
1 - Painless ulcer
2 - Rash, mucosal lesion, multi system involvement
Latent- symptom-free for years
3 - Up to 40 years after initial infection (neurosyphillis, parenchymous, cardiovascular syphillis, Gummas)
What is trichomanas vaginalis?
Infection but flagellated Protozoa
Treated with metranidazole
Scabies can spread sexually. True/False
True. It can affect the genitalia and spread. Treatment is permethrin
What are anogenital warts?
- Benign lesion caused by the HPV virus
- More than 100 HPV types
Which HPV types commonly cause genital warts?
Types 6 or 11
What are the features of anogenital warts?
-Benign, painless, epithelial or mucosal outgrowths
Found at
- Penis
- Vulva
- Vagina
- Urethra
- Cervix
- Perianal skin
Which strains of HPV are high risk oncogenic?
HPV 16
HPV 18
What is used in the diagnosis of Anogenital warts?
-Biopsy in atypical lesion or non-response treatment
What are the treatment measures for anogenital warts?
- No treatment
- Topical application
- Physical ablation
- HPV vaccination
What is bacterial vaginosis?
Common cause of abnormal discharge in women of childbearing age. Discharge often fishy
- Gardnerella vaginalis
- Treated with metronidazole
What is vulvovaginal candidiasis?
- Caused by Candida albicans or non albicans candida species
- Vaginal discharge typically curdy and non offensive, Vulval itch, Soreness, Dyspareunia
Treatment: Topical and oral azoles
What is pelvic inflammatory disease?
Result of infection ascending the endocervix causing endometriosis, salpingitis, parametrises, oophoritis, tubo-ovarian abscess and/or pelvic peritonitis.
What is the pathophysiology of pelvic inflammatory disease?
- Ascending infection from endocervic and vagina
- Infecgtion causes inflammation
- Inflammationc causes damage which lead to damaged tubal epithelium and adhesion can then form
- Some recovery of the tubal epithelium does occur
What is endometritis?
Inflammation of the endometrial lining
What is salpingitis?
- Inflammation of the Fallopian tube
- Neutrophils and macrophages invade and this form and inflammatory exudate
- The tubes become filled with pus
- Formation of adhesions and fibrin blocks the tubes
What are complications of salpingitis?
-Abscess can form which can spread around the ovaries or within the tube
What is the aetiology of pelvic inflammatory disease?
-Sexually transmitted disease
Example organisms
- Chlamydia trachomatis
- Neisseria Gonorrhoea
What are the clinical symptoms of Pelvic inflammatory diseases?
- Pyrexia
- Pain
- Lower abdominal pain
- Deep dyspareunia
- Abnormal vaginal/ cervical discharge
- Abnormal vaginal bleeding
- Sexual history
- STI
- Contraceptive history
What is found on examination in patient with pelvic inflammatory diseases?
Fever Lower abdominal tenderness (usually bilateral) Bimanual examination -adnexal tenderness with or without a mass -Cervical motion tenderness -Speculum examination -Lower genital infection -Purulent cervical discharges -Cervicitis
What are investigations undertaken in patients suspected with pelvic inflammatory diseases?
- Urinary and/or serum pregnancy test
- Endocervical and High vaginal swabs (absence of Clamydia trachomatis and Neisseria Gonorrhea doesnt exclude diagnosis)
- Blood tests: WBC and CRP
- Screening for other STIs including HIV
- Diagnostic laparoscopy is gold standard - Can also perform adhesiolysis and drain abscesses
What are drugs used to treat PIDs?
- Ceftriaxone
- Docycline
- Metranidazole
How are PIDs managed?
- Low threshold for empirical treatment
- Symptomatic management with analgesia and rest
- Management of sepsis
- Severe disease requires IV antibiotics and admission for observation and possible surgical intervention
- Contcct tracing for partners and full screening for women
What are complications of PIDs?
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Infertility
- Chronic pelvic pain
- Fits-Hugh-Curtis syndrome
- Reiter syndrome (disseminated chlamydial infection)
Where can gynaecological tumours arise?
- Vulva
- Cervix
- Endometrium
- Myometrium
- Ovary
What are the clinical features of vulval tumours?
- Uncommon
- Women over 60 makes 2/3 of patient
- Usually Squamous cell carcinoma
How are vulval squamous neoplastic lesions related to HPV infection?
- 30% related to HPV infection and it usually HPV 16
- 70% are unrelated to HPV. Most occur due to longstanding inflammation and hyper plastic conditions of the vulva
What is VIN?
- Vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia
- Atypical squamous cells in the epidermis
- In situ precursor of vulval squamous cell carcinoma
How does Vulval squamous cell carcinoma spread?
- Spreads initially to inguinal, pelvic, iliac and para-aortic lymph nodes
- Also spreads to lungs and liver
What are the treatment options for vulval squamous cell carcinoma?
Less than 2cm
-Vulvectomy and lymphadenectomy
What is the likely causes of CIN or cervical carcinoma?
-Almost all cases related to High risk HPVs
What are the most important high risk HPV in the pathogenesis of cervical carcinoma?
- HPV 16
- HPV 18
What is the pathogenesis of HPV in CIN or cervical carcinoma?
- Infection of immature metaplastic squamous cells in transformation zone
- Production of viral proteins E6 and E7
- These interfere with tumour suppressor proteins (p53 and RB) to cause inability of repair damaged DNA and increased proliferation of cells
- Most genital HPV infectious transient and eliminated by immune response in months
What are the risk factors of Vulval squamous cell carcinoma, CIN, and Cervical Carcinoma?
- Sexual intercourse
- Early first marriage
- Early first pregnancy
- Multiple births
- Many partners
- Promiscuous partner
- Long term use of OCP
- Partner with carcinoma of the penis
- Low socio-economic class
- Smoking
- Immunosuppression
slide 13
What does cervical screening involve?
- Cells from the transformation zone are scraped off
- Stained with Papanicolaou stain
- Examined microscopically
-Can also test for HPV DNA in cervical cels through molecular method of screening
Start at age 25 and do it every 3 years till 50
Then every 5 years 50-65
What is done if an abnormal cervical screening is observed?
- Coloscopy
- Biopsy
What is cervical intraepithelial neoplasia?
-Dysplasia of squamous cells within the cervical epithelium, induced by infection with high risk HPVs
What is the grading of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia?
CIN 1 - most regress spontaneously. Few progress
CIN 2 - proportion progresses to
CIN 3 - Carcinoma in situ. 10% Progresses to invasive carcinoma in 2-10 yrs and 30% regress
CIN 1 to CIN 3 takes 7 years
What is the treatment for CIN?
- CIN 1: Follow up or cryotherapy
- CIN 2 and CIN 3: Superficial excision of transformation zone
What are the types of invasive cervical carcinoma?
- Squamous cell carcinoma (80%)
- Adenocarcinoma (15%)
Average Age - 45 years
May be exophytic or infiltrative
How does cervical carcinoma spread?
- Locally to para-cervical soft tissues, bladder, ureters, rectum, vagina
- Lymph nodes (para-cervical, pelvic, para-aortic)
- Distally
How does cervical carcinoma present?
- Screening abnormality
- Post-coital, intermenstrual or post-menopausal vaginal bleeding
How is invasive cervical carcinoma treated?
Microinvasive (5 yr survival = 100%)
-Treated with cervical cone excision
Invasive carcinoma (62% ten year survival) -Treated with hysterectomy, lymph node dissection and if advanced, radiation and chemotherapy
What is endometrial hyperplasia?
- Increased gland to stroma ratio
- Frequent precursor to endometrial carcinoma
- Endometrium line the internal cavity of uterus
What is associated with endometrial hyperplasia?
- Annouvulation
- Increased oestrogen from endogenous sources
- Exogenous oestrogen
How is endometrial hyperplasia treated if complex and atypical?
Hysterectomy
What are the clinical features of endometrial adenocarcinoma?
- Common invasive cancer of the genital tract
- Usually 55-75
What is the presentation of endometrial adenocarcinoma?
-Irregular or post menopausal vaginal bleeding
Early detection and cure often possible.
What are the macroscopic features of endometrial adenocarcinoma?
-Can be polyploid or infiltrative
What types of endometrial adenocarcinoma are there?
Endometrioid (more common)
- Mimics proliferative glands
- Arises from endometrial hyperplasia
- Associated with unopposed oestrogen ad obesity
- Spread by myometrial invasion and direct extension to adjacent structures, to local lymph nodes and distant sites
Serous carcinoma
- Poorly differentiated, aggressive, worse prognosis
- Exfoliates, travels through Fallopian tubes and implants on peritoneal surfaces
What is the commonest tumour of the myometrium?
- Leiomyoid = fibroid
- Benign tumour of myometrium
- Often multiple
- Tiny to massive, filling the pelvis
What is the presentation of leiomyoma?
- Asymptomatic
- Can cause heavy/painful periods
- Urinary frequency
- Infertility
What is a malignant tumour of myometrium?
- Uterine leimysarcoma
- Uncommmon (40-60 yrs)
- Highly malignant
- Doesn’t arise from leiomyomas
- Metastasise to lungs
What are clinical features of ovarian tumours?
- Approximately 80% are benign and generally occur at 20-45 yrs
- Malignant tumours generally occur at 45-65 yrs
- Malignant tumours generally occur at 45-65 yrs
- Many are bilateral
How do ovarian tumours present?
- Most are non-functional. Only produce symptoms when they become large and invade adjacent structures or metastasise
- Hormonal problems
What are the symptoms of large non-functional tumours?
- Abdominal pain
- Abdominal distension
- Urinary and Gastrointestinal symptoms
- Ascites
What are the hormonal problems of ovarian tumours?
- Menstrual disturbances
- Inappropriate sex hormones
What are the clinical features of malignant ovarian tumours?
- 50% spread to other ovary
- Spread to regional nodes and elsewhere
- Some associated with BRCA mutations (carriers treated with prophylactic sapling-oophrectomy)
What is used in diagnosis of malignant ovarian tumours?
CA-125
-Monitor disease recurrence and progression
How are ovarian tumour classified?
- Mullerian (ovarian) epithelium (endometriosis)
- Germ cell
- Sex cord-stromal cells
- Metastases
What are the 3 main histological types of ovarian epithelial tumours?
- Serous
- Mucinous
- Endometrioid
Many are cystic
What are risk fact for ovarian epithelial tumours?
- Nulliparity or low parity
- OCP protective
- Heritable mutations eg BRCA1 and BRCA2
- Smoking
- Endometriosis
What are serous ovarian tumours?
-Often spread to peritoneal surfaces and omentum and commonly associated with ascites
What are mucinous ovarian tumours?
- Often large, cystic masses which can be more than 25 kg
- Filled with sticky, thick fluid
- Usually benign or borderline
What is pseudomyxoma peritonei? (thought to be from micnous but not)
- Extensive mutinous ascites
- Epithelial implants on peritoneal surfaces
- Frequent involvement f ovaries
- Can cause intestinal obstruction
- Most likely is extra-ovarian usually appendix
What is endometrioid ovarian tumour?
- Tumour has tubular glad resembling endometrial glands
- Can arise in endometriosis
- 15-30% have associated endometrial endometrial endometriod adenocarcinoma probably arising separately
What are Germ cell ovarian tumours?
- 15-20% of all ovarian neoplasms
- Most are teratomas which are usually benign
- Other types are malignant and include dysgerminoma, Yolk sac tumour, Choriocarcinoma, Embryonal carcinoma
What are the types of ovarian teratoma?
- Mature (benign) is most common
- Mono-dermal (highly specialised)
- Immature (malignant) is rare and composed to tissues that resemble immature foetal tssue
What are the clinical features of ovarian mature teratomas?
- Most are cystic
- Most contain skin lie structures
- Usually occur in young women
- Bilateral in 10-15% of cases
What is usually contain in ovarian mature teratomas?
- Contain hair and sebaceous material and can contain tooth structures
- Often also tissue from other germ laters such as cartilage, bone, thyroid and neural tissue
What is the most common mono-dermal ovarian teratoma?
Struma ovarii
- Benign
- Composed entirely of mature thyroid tissue
- May be functional and cause hyperthyroidism
What are ovarian sex cord-strumal tumours?
- Derived from ovarian stroma
- Produces Sertoli and Leydig cells leading cell in testes and Granulosa and Theca cells in the ovaries
- Tumours reselling all of these four cell types can be found in the ovary
- These tumours can be feminising or masculinising
What are the clinical features of granulosa cell tumours?
- Most occur in post-menopausal women
- May produce large amounts of oestrogen
What may be produced in pre-pubertal girls and adult women due to granulosa cell tumours?
- Precocious puberty in pre-pubertal girls
- Endometrial hyperplasia, endometrial carcinoma and breast disease in adult women
What are the clinical dealers of ovarian-seroli leading cll tumours?
Often functional. Peak incidence in teens or twenties
- In children, may block normal female sexual development
- In women can cause defeminisation and masculinisation
What tumours occur in the testes?
- Germ cell tumours
- Sex cord-stromal tumors (Sertoli cell tumours, Leydig cell tumours)
- Lymphomas
What are types of germ cell tumours occurring in men?
- Seminomas
- Non-seminomatous germ cell tumours (Yolk sac tumours, Embryonal carcinomas, Choriocarcinomas, Teratomas)
Which tumours commonly metastasise to the ovaries?
Mullerian tumours from
- Uterus
- Fallopian tubes
- Contralateral ovary
- Pelvic peritoneum
What other tumours metastasise to the ovaries?
- Gastrointestinal tumour and breast
- Krukenberg tumour : mestastatic gastrointestinal tumour within the ovaries which is often bilateral and from the stomach
What covers the corpus cavernosa in the penis?
Fibrous capsule (Tunica albuginea)
Which structure derived from the peritoneum covers the testes and what is it’s structure?
Tunica Vaginalis
- Parietal layer
- Cavity
- Visceral layer
Where does spermatogenesis occur?
Semineferous tubules
Where does the sperm mature and learn to swim (motile)?
In the Epididymis
What is the rete testis?
Hilum of the testes where things go in and come out
What is a hydrocoele?
A collection of serous fluid within the tunica vaginalis. It is most commonly due to a failure of the processus vaginalis to close.
What are sertoli cells?
Sertoli cells are the somatic cells of the testis that are used for spermatogenesis. They are vital for maturation of sperm by providing nutrition and hormonal support to germ cells
What is the purpose of Leydig cells?
- Sit outside of tubules and are involved in testosterone synthesis.
- Involved in lipid metabolism
Why does the left testicle hang lower than the right?
Greater resistance for drainage for the left so it hangs lower
What is testicular torsion?
Testicular torsion occurs when the spermatic cord twists upon itself. This causes an increase in the pressure in the region and this leads to occlusion of the testicular artery, resulting in necrosis of the testes.
Why are the testicles sutured after receiving a testicular torsion?
The individual normally has a predisposition for the spermatic cord to twists upon itself
How is the spermatic fascia formed?
-Testes evaginate the abdominal wall as they are pulled through the gubernaculum.
What are the fascial coverings of the spermtic cord?
- External spermatic fascia
- Cremaster muscle and fascia
- Internal spermatic fascia
What is the anatomical course of the vas deferens?
- It is continuous with the tail of the epididymis.
- Travels through the inguinal canal.
- Moves down the lateral pelvic wall in close proximity to the ischial spine.
- Turns medially to pass between the bladder and the ureter.
- Joins the duct from the seminal vesicle to form the ejaculatory duct.
Which part does BPH and prostate cancers affect?
- BPH affects the transitional zone
- Prostate cancers tend to affect the peripheral zone
Why does BPH present earlier than prostate carcinomas?
The BPH affect the transitional zone whereas prostate carcinoma is usually in the peripheral zone. This means that symptoms (trouble urinating) presents earlier
What occurs at the pelvic floor during catheterisation?
It is the narrowest part of the urethra so increased resistance so you have to keep pushing
What are the functions of the penis?
- Expulsion of urine via urethra
- Deposition of sperm in female genital tract
- Removal of competitors’ sperm
- Attraction of mates
How does an erection form?
- Vasodilation in penile arterioles and compression of veins.
- Sinusoidal relaxation
- Tunica albuginea is thick and doest expand so more blood.
How is vasodilation initiated in an erection?
By parasympathetic stimulation
How is an erection terminated?
Vasoconstriction of arterioles
Which nervous system control emission and ejaculation?
Sympathetic Nervous system
What is the structure of the penis?
2 corpus Cavinosum
1 Corpus spongiosum
Why do women sometimes get a sharp pain at ovulation?
The oocyte pops out of the ovary and breaches the peritoneum. Parietal peritoneum surround the ovary and is filled with somatic nerves which innervate it
How are the collagen fibres of the tunica albuginea of the penis arranged?
Arranged at right angles to each other.
There are circumferential collagen fibres and parallel collagen fibres
What symptoms do ovarian cysts present with?
- Can rupture or undergo torsion which gives you pain
- Bloating
- Stretching
What are the parts of the uterus?
- Fundus (top)
- Body (middle)
- Cervix (bottom)
What is the appearance of the cervix in pregnant woman?
-Slit like appearance
What is the appearance of the cervix when the woman hasn’t been pregnant?
-Circular appearance
What are the symptoms experienced as the foetus grows?
- Acid reflux due to mechanical compression
- Hormones makes lower oesophageal sphincter leaky
- Constipation
- Urinary frequency increases due to bladder being squashed
- Extreme stretch of ligamentous structures
What is the most common site for ectopic pregnancies?
Ampulla
What is important to confirm when a young woman presents with abdominal pain?
You need to confirm with a pregnant test as if its a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, the woman can bleed to death due to pregnant.
What is the function of the Peg cels?
They nourish and maintain the egg
What moves the egg into the uterine tube?
The fimbriae
How can infection spread into the peritoneum through the vaginal canal?
The uterine tube open into the peritoneal cavity so infection can spread into the peritoneum from the vaginal canal
What is the broad ligament?
Peritoneal fold.
What is the round ligament?
Remnants of the gubernaculum.
-Pulls the gonads down from the top of the abdomen to the pelvis
What is the suspensory ligament?
Neurovascular pathway bulging into the peritoneum.
Where is the mesometrium?
-Largest part of the broad ligament and covers the uterus up to the lateral pelvic wall
Runs laterally to cover the external iliac vessels, forming a distinct fold over them. The mesometrium also encloses the proximal part of the round ligament of the uterus.
What is the mesosalpinx?
Originates superiorly to the mesovarium, enclosing the fallopian tubes. Hangs from the tubes
What is the mesovarium?
- Part of the broad ligament associated with the ovaries
- Projects from the posterior surface of the broad ligament and attaches to the hilum of the ovary, enclosing its neurovascular supply. It does not cover the surface of the ovary itself.
(Imagine it suspending the ovary)
What is the blood supply and drainage to the uterus?
- Uterine artery for supply
- Uterine veins for drainage
What is the lymphatic drainage of the uterus?
Iliac, Sacral, Aortic and Inguinal lymph nodes
What is the epithelium lining the vagina?
Stratified squamous epithelium
Why is there lots of glycogen in the vagina?
Favourite food for lacto-bacilli. Maintains acidic pH due to conversion of glycol to lactic acid. This acts as defence against infection
How does the structure of the Fallopian tube facilitate transport of the ovum towards the uterus?
-Tissue structure has cilia which help to waft the egg to the uterus
Why could there be pain in shoulder top following ruptured ectopic pregnancy?
- Internal bleeding could irritate the diaphragm
- This can irritate the phrenic nerve which has sensory nerve roots at C3, C4 and C5
- This can lead to pain at the shoulder
What can be palpated at the:
A. Posterior fornix
B. Lateral fornix
C. Anterior fornix
A. Assessment of the rectouterine pouch
B. Assessment of the adnexal masses
C. Uterus
What is the purpose of the menstrual cycle?
Preparation of
- Gamete via the ovarian cycle
- Endometrium by the uterine cycle
What are the control mechanism of the menstrual cycle?
Gonadotrophins acting on the ovary
Ovarian steroids:
- Acting on tissues of the reproductive tract
- Acting to control the cycle
Outline the HPO axis control of the menstrual cycle
- GnRH produced by the hypothalamus
- Acts on the anterior pituitary to release the gonadotrophins: FSH and LH
- Gonadotrophins act on the ovary to promote follicular development and produce ovarian hormone like steroid hormones and inhibit
- The gonadal hormones act to control the system
What happens if GnRH release is continuous rather than intermittent?
- Continuous exposure of the GnRH receptors to GnRH lead to them becoming desensitised
- FSH and LH production stops
- Gonadal steroid production stops
What are the feature of the start of the menstrual cycle?
- No ovarian hormone
- Early development of follicles begin
- Low steroid and inhibit levels
- Little inhibition at hypothalamus or anterior pituitary
- Free from inhibition
- FSH levels are rising
What is the effect of FSH in the menstrual cycle?
- Bind to granulosa cells
- Follicular development continues
- Theca interna appears
- Follicle now capable of oestrogen secretion
- Inhibin secretion begins