Brown Spotting After Period: Trace Amounts of Blood Spot After Period

Brown Spotting After Period: Trace Amounts of Blood Spot After Period

Brown Spotting After Period Am I Pregant?

Brown spotting after period can be caused by several factors. It is not always a warning sign or a cause of concern. It can be a sign of early pregnancy or it could just be a leftover of the last menstrual cycle, which is not just being discharged.

What is Spotting?

• 
  This is the appearance of trace amounts of blood and is differentiated from menstrual bleeding
  
  


• 
  In most cases, blood does not reach the underwear, instead it is observed when a woman wipes with tissue
  
  


• 
  Spotting can occur post or pre menstrual flow
  
  


• 
  The discharge may be pink or bright red.
  
  
  Dark brown spotting after period is also common.
  
  


• 
  Light brown spotting may also occur
  
  

Endometrial Shedding – Cause of Spotting After a Period

• 
  After menstruation, there may still be some tissue left on the uterus.
  
  


• 
  This lining is shed 3 to 4 days after the end of a menstrual cycle in order to prepare for the next one.
  
  


• 
  It can be considered as a cleaning out of the uterine lining.
  
  

Pregnancy and Ovulation

Spotting may also be a symptom of ovulation or of early pregnancy.

• 
  When the spotting occurs 3 or 4 weeks after the last period, it could be implantation bleeding.
  
  
  


• 
  This is caused by the fertilized embryo burrowing into the walls of the uterus
  
  


• 
  Spotting may also occur as a result of ovulation and is thought to be due to the ovum bursting out of the ovaries causing a bit of bleeding.
  
  

When Spotting is a Cause for Concern

In some cases, post period spotting may be caused by something more serious than just the sloughing off of the previous endometrial lining. These causes include:

• 
  Uterine Polyps
  
  


• 
  Bacterial Infection
  
  


• 
  STDs
  
  


• 
  Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)
  
  


• 
  Vaginosis
  
  


• 
  Cervical Cancer
  
  


• 
  Endometriosis
  
  

Oftentimes, these conditions exhibit symptoms other than spotting, this includes pain and fever.