As recently as a decade ago, when there were far fewer products readily available for menstrual cramps than now, some doctors prescribed powerful prescription painkillers. Others, many women recall, told patients their problems would disappear as they grew older or after they had children. But today, the pain associated with menstruation is taken more seriously, and there are new, highly effective treatments for it. Primary dysmenorrhea usually starts within three years of the onset of menstruation and lasts one or two days each month. While this type of menstrual pain may lessen for some women as they grow older or after the birth of children, it also can continue until menopause.
Endometriosis is a major cause of secondary dysmenorrhea.
Pain from it usually starts later in life and worsens with time, according to Debrovner. Another hint that disease might be the cause of menstrual pain is if pain also occurs during intercourse or during other parts of the cycle. The prostaglandins, in turn, make the uterus contract more strongly than at any other time of the cycle. They can even cause it to contract so much that the blood supply is cut off temporarily, depriving the uterine muscle of oxygen and thus causing pain. Women who suffer painful contractions may be producing excessive amounts of prostaglandins.