Vanishing ovaries

P.S. I have had five babies, so must have had ovaries at some stage!

I know they shrink a lot as we get older GrandmainOz and hit menopause but I have never heard of the totally disappearing . Could it be perhaps that they are just tiny and therefore very hard to see?

Found this

“If ovaries are not removed surgically, they are still present. After menopause, our ovaries do shrink. Pre-menopause ovaries are 3-4cm, but after menopause they can be 0.5cm-1.0cm. The older we get, the smaller they become but they never disappear.”

They can shrink to as little as 0.5cm and can also be obscured by other organs. My understanding is that they can’t actually really disappear as such.

Thanks, ladies, some food for thought. I do appreciate it. I think the radiographer muttered something about atrophy to the nurse, but I wasn't sure I heard him, and when I piped up, he said he couldn't discuss it, I had to wait for radiologiat report at the doctor's.
Thankyou both

Anja crossed post

Maybe I'm actually in menopause but my uterus didn't get the memo!

Maybe my post of 07.05 is invisible . Hey ho . I mostly talk crap anyway .

gilly not invisible - I just looked up how small they can shrink to as until recently I’d no idea what size a normal ovary was. Sorry if it sounded I’d ignored your post

Just taking your point and googling it gilly and finding you were correct. Then maryeliza spotted we’d crossed posts.

You all right? Sound a bit put out.

Sorry, typo, should have read thankyou ALL, not both. My apologies - typing too quickly as usual

It's great once the menopause is over. Sorry you're having such a bad time right now though.

I have nothing to add but just wanted to say how much I appreciate all the stuff that I learn on Gransnet. I now know that ovaries can disappear (or almost disappear to be correct). Amazing!

I didn't know either DanniRae
Amazing what you learn on GN, thankyou gillybob, Anja and maryeliza!

I hope all goes well, GrandmainOz.
When I was approaching menopause I used to get a pain in that region, as if someone had inserted a needle! so perhaps it was because because an egg has a problem releasing from an ovary which has shrunk.

When IS it over though? 65 this month still have bleeding most months.I've been investigated ,internal and external scans ,womb biopsies you name it I've had it. I have HRT to avert the symptoms of menopause and it works well My sister still bleeds and she's 70!! My gynaecologist says all women are different and as long as he keeps an eye on whats happening and nothing changes then carry on as I am .I do have an ovarian cyst but it hasn't grown in the past 5 years of checks ,neither have the cysts that I have on my cervix .Any other pensioners with periods ?

Oh Paddyann I feel for you, such a pain and faff. At least you will remain youthful if we believe menopause tales.
Where is momb to answer these questions ?

paddyann you and your sister have my sympathy. I'm 65 (last bleed 10 yrs ago) and the thought of dealing with that at my age
I had no idea ovaries shrank with age. Jalima I think you maybe right regarding the pains.

paddyann it'll be the HRT which is causing you to bleed, or did you already know that ? When you take both oestrogen and progesterone together it will cause this " inconvenience " but as long as you're checked out that's fine. It's only nature continuing its process.

When I had an internal ultrasound they could only find one ovary and the other was very small. I was told this was quite normal post menopause.

I remember having a scan where my left ovary couldn't be detected. It was after a period of " spotting " when I was put on HRT so had the scan as a precautionary measure. I was taken off HRT and left to face the battle of the menopause.

Grandmainoz...this must be a very worrying time for you. Do get back to us when you have your results.

Hey all. Do appreciate the posts.
Saw the GP. There is no obvious reason for the missing ovaries, as apparently it's a new ultrasound machine, so it could be atrophy, but given my poor mother's experience, he says they need to be "found"..
Uterine fibroids were quite extensive, which is how my mother's issues started, so I have an urgent referral to a gynaecologist who my GP says is the best in his opinion. Very pleased with that. He also questioned some other symptoms which I hadn't thought to mention as I didn't know they were relevant and has included them in his referral.
So next step is me pestering this gynaecologist for an appointment asap.

Has anyone mentioned the CA125 blood test to you and an MRI? You could have the blood test done via the GP straightaway and that would be one possible delay out of the way. It’s not definitive but it’s a regular part of the diagnostic process. It’s the waiting during the diagnostic process that can be so hard.

maryeliza54 One of my first questions to the GP was "should I have any blood tests"?
His reply was that they could just confuse things. I found this an odd response, hence my relief when he made the referral to a specialist.
I have not heard of the CA125 test you mention. I shall look it up and ask the gynaecologist about it when I get my appointment. MRI wasn't mentioned by the GP either, but again I shall raise this at my appointment.
Thanks so much for your post