Menstrual Surgery Options Available to Those Suffering from Menorrhagia
Women that suffer from menorrhagia are not only inconvenienced each month, they may experience pain, emotional turmoil and difficulty getting pregnant. Menorrhagia is excessively heaving bleeding during menstruation. It is believed that this is one of the most common menstrual disorder, but it is often hard to diagnose because measuring menstrual flow is difficult. Women may experience a variety of other symptoms as well, and sometimes the heavy flow is a symptom itself. It is more common amongst women suffering from fibroids or cysts on their reproductive organs, and there may be a link to obesity and menorrhagia. In severe cases of menorrhagia, a woman may choose menstrual surgery to cope with her condition.
What Is It?
There are different surgical procedures commonly associated with menorrhagia. Hysteroscopic surgery places a small telescopic instrument into the uterine cavity for examination. There are no incisions during the procedure and the tool is inserted through the vagina into the uterus. The doctor is able to remove scar tissue, polyps, and small fybroid tumors. This procedure stops or reduces menstrual flow and preserves fertility. It is safer than a traditional hysterectomy, and in most cases, has less side effects.
A second minimally invasive option is laparoscopic surgery. In this procedure a thin, fiber-optic tube with a tiny video camera on the end of it is inserted into the uterus through a small incision in the navel. It is then guided to the problem area. The surgeon then inserts tiny surgical instruments through another small incision to perform the operation.
A third form of surgery, which is known as Uterine Balloon Ablation, or roller ball surgery, destroys the uterine lining of women that suffer excessive blood flow. It is an outpatient procedure, and many women experience only minor cramping as a result of the surgery. Some require only a 24 hour recovery period and most are back to a relatively normal life within a week. It is necessary to refrain from exercise and strenuous activity for 3-4 weeks. This procedure does carry the risk of sterility, but if someone intends to be sterile following the procedure, it is recommended that a tubal ligation be performed simultaneously.
Who Needs It?
Women that suffer from heavy menstrual bleeding are prime candidates for the surgery. While menorrhagia is not often a dangerous condition, severe cases of it can lead to anemia. Women suffering from fibroids and polyps are also candidates for the procedure. In the case of hysteroscopy surgery, women that still have a desire to conceive will most often be recommended for that procedure in lieu of other options.
Benefits
The major benefit of menstrual surgery is that more often than not, it will put an end to the condition. Women that suffer from a variety of menstrual disorders will benefit from surgery. The effects of suffering from fibroids, polyps and scar tissue can be limiting and unpleasant. Women may see a boost in their sex lives, confidence, and overall health once they have remedied the menstrual disorder that was plaguing them.
The majority of the non-invasive procedures is that there is minimal recovery time and many women are able to return home the same day. There is less pain and because there are no incisions, the risk of infection may be reduced as well.
Risks
Aside from the typical risks of surgery, such as a negative or severe reaction to anesthesia, menstrual surgery holds limited risk. There is some danger to the uterus, as any time instruments are inserted near tender tissue, the patient could suffer perforation. This, or other poor reactions, could lead to sterility. Some women desire sterility when having the operation, but young women that want their reproductive organs to remain functional should understand there are risks associated with the procedure. Granted, women that opt to undergo menstrual surgery often find it difficult to get pregnant due to their pre-existing conditions. Surgery may be the only hope a woman has for conceiving, and she is willing to accept the risk.
The options for women suffering from menorrhagia or other menstrual disorders are varied and safe. Depending upon a woman’s age, condition, and desire to have children, she and her doctor will choose the procedure that will work best for her. If you believe you have a condition that could be remedied through menstrual surgery, discuss your options with your doctor as soon as possible.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your health care provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate health care provider.
Frequently Asked Questions
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QUESTION:
What are the chances fybroid tumors are cancerous? ?
What are the chances fybroid tumors can become cancerous?-
ANSWER:
Slim to none.
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QUESTION:
i’ve had fybroid tumors for 8yrs now, i do not want a hysterectomy because i want to have kids, can i get help?
my tumors are the size of a woman that’s 5 months pregnant! how can i get help?-
ANSWER:
You’ll need a proper medical opinion from a consultant, it maybe worth even getting a second opinion to finally decide on your best option. I’ve known several people with fibroid trouble, it depends on each individual as to the best course of treatment.A hysterectomy is not always required to correct the problem.
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QUESTION:
What is Fybroid Tumors on the uterus?
Why have an hysterectomy?
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ANSWER:
What are fibroids?
Fibroid tumors are usually benign (non-cancerous) tumors found, most often, in the uterus of women in their 30’s and 40’s, although they occasionally develop on other organs which contain smooth muscle cells.
Fibroid tumors are solid tumors which are made of fibrous tissue, hence the name ‘fibroid’ tumor. Most often fibroids occur as multiple tumor masses which are slow-growing and often cause no symptoms.The size of fibroids varies immensely among women and some are so small that a microscope is required to see them. However some women experience a single large fibroid tumor the size of a grapefruit or a fibroid which is so large it encompasses the entire abdominal area. Such large tumors can weigh as much as 50 pounds; the largest, reported, fibroid ever recorded weighed in at 140 pounds.
No one is sure why fibroid tumors develop, but some facts are quite clear– they do not develop before the body begins producing estrogen during the onset of menstruation– estrogen, such as in birth control pills and taken for menopausal symptoms, does cause fibroid tumors to grow and fibroid tumors will grow very quickly during pregnancy when the body is producing extra estrogen– they often shrink and disappear after menopause when the body stops producing estrogen–a woman will almost never develop fibroid tumors after menopause.
The estrogen connection appears to be quite clear, although there are still some who doubt the role estrogen plays in the development of fibroid tumors because women with fibroids often have blood levels which reveal normal amounts of estrogen.
Types of Fibroid Tumors
Submucous FibroidsThese fibroids occur just below the lining of the uterus and can cause menstrual problems, including pain as they grow and move around the pelvic area.
Intramural Fibroids
A round fibroid most often within the uterine wall which can cause enlargement of the uterus as they grow.
Subserous Fibroids
This fibroid grows on the outer wall of the uterus and usually causes no symptoms until it grows large enough to interfere with other organs.
Pedunculated Fibroids
These fibroids develop when a subserous fibroid grows a peduncle (stalk), as they grow larger they may become twisted and cause severe pain.
Interligamentous Fibroid
A fibroid which grows sideways between the ligaments which support the uterus in the abdominal region. This type of fibroid is especially difficult to remove without the possibility of interfering with the blood supply or other organs.
Parasitic Fibroid
The rarest form of fibroid tumor occurs when a fibroid attaches itself to another organ.
Diagnosis of Fibroid Tumors
Diagnosis of fibroids is generally made by your physician during your annual gynecological exam when your physician feels a mass, they often are found when your physician is looking for something else or may never be discovered if you do not experience symptoms. However larger fibroids may make examination of your ovaries impossible if they grow near your ovaries.An ultrasound scan is often ordered when such masses are felt by your physician to determine the cause of the mass, however some fibroids appear on sonograms as ovarian tumors and surgery is the only way an accurate diagnosis can be made.
Although most fibroids cause no symptoms, the estimated 25 percent of women who do have symptoms may have abnormal bleeding, pain during menstruation, and as the fibroid tumors grow larger, women will often experience a swollen abdomen.
Larger fibroids may cause frequent urination or an inability to control your bladder, either the ability to control the urge or in severe cases, a women may find that she is unable to urinate at all. If a fibroid extends towards a woman’s back it may push on the bowels, causing constipation and a backache.
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QUESTION:
what is the caution on the lable it is to small to read?
is this product good for a person is they have fybroid tumors, low blood, weight problem . can you drink one bottle a day.
it is a energy drink-
ANSWER:
Without knowing what you are considering taking, it’s impossible to know what might be on that caution.
You could try looking up the product online. If it has a website, the cautions about the product are very likely somewhere on it.Be careful!
(And maybe get a magnifying glass or stronger glasses?)
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QUESTION:
are fibroids the same as tumors?
when i was in the womb it was found my mum had a massive fibroid beside mei was stressed out and was late and i came out like a gorilla (hairy) did this fybroid cos this?
in my 20’s now i suffer from hirstuism is this maybe why?
also was this ovarian cancer or just a fybroid?
in later years she had a tumor in her back and a secondary one in her lung and now pancreas
in trying to understand was this fybroid ovarian cyst or ovarian cancer or just a fybroid and did that cause the other tumors?
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ANSWER:
Fibroids are benign tumors of the Uterine smooth muscle tissue. They hardly ever become cancerous or malignant. The uterine muscular cells are heaped up in one place in a whorl like pattern and all the cells will be timid looking under the microscope. They grow slowly rather very slowly. They change the shape of the Uterus and sometimes Uterus becomes “bulky” with multiple fibroids on its body. They can be towards the cavity or within the muscle substance or towards the external surface. They are thought of to have arisen due to hormonal fluctuation. This varies from person to person, so some have none some some and some many fibroids and those who have them have of different sizes. The last worry from the fibroid is that of malignant change. But what they can actually cause is that they can increase the surface area of the uterus resulting in heavy periods or incessant periods or irregular periods. They may interfere in conception rendering the couple childless. Rarely it may bleed within itself causing pain or very rarely get infected. They can undergo hyaline change.
If the mother conceives it WILL NOT have any harmful effect on the foetus or baby. Hirsutism is not caused by Fibroids. Ovarian tumour or cancer is totally unrelated to Fibroid; Fibroid is not as a result of ovarian cancer or vice versa.
Ovarian cancer or tumour can however cause features of Hirsutism if it is producing male hormones or mimicking hormones.
The tumour on the back and secondaries are de-novo and are not as a result of fibroids.
Occasionally fibroids can cause a sensation of heaviness in the pelvis or dragging type of pain or low back ache and the like (non-specific symptoms)
Although Fibroids are suspected to cause infertility, surprisingly many women conceive in spite of there being a big fibroid.
Fibroids can be removed by Myomectomy operation if family is not completed or by Hysterectomy if Family is completed.
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