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Tired of Heavy Bleeding?
New Non- Hysterectomy Solutions!!
Are you tired of having heavy periods? Sick of having days
and days of irregular bleeding? Frustrated with staining clothes and changing
your lifestyle because of your bleeding?
If so, you are not alone! You may be suffering from a
medical condition known as menorrhagia, or heavy bleeding. This is one
of the most common complaints of patients, who are sent in for referral.
Amazingly, 1 in 5 women experience unusually heavy menstrual bleeding which
disrupts their lives. Luckily, there are now many options, which do not require
hysterectomy, which can alleviate this problem.
What is heavy bleeding or menorrhagia?
If your bleeding lasts 7 or more days per cycle or is you
need to change protection (tampons or pads) almost every hour, you may have be
suffering from menorrhagia. In medical terms, this bleeding would equal
approximately 80 cc., but you don’t need to measure the blood on your pads to
determine the diagnosis! Usually, if you need to change your tampon/pad every
1-2 hours, your bleeding may be classified as excessive. In addition, due to
this loss of blood each month, you may be experiencing certain symptoms such as
fatigue, anemia, and accompanying menstrual cramping/pain.
What causes this heavy bleeding?
There are many causes for menorrhagia and you should
undergo a thorough gynecological evaluation to help determine the etiology. The
most common causes for increased bleeding are uterine fibroids (smooth muscle
growths in the uterus), and uterine polyps (smaller growths within the uterine
lining). Rarely, increased bleeding is due to uterine cancer. Pelvic
ultrasound is a wonderful tool which aids in diagnosis. Usually, after an
initial examination and evaluation, I obtain a pelvic ultrasound which
visualizes the pelvic anatomy, including the cervix, uterus, fallopian tubes and
ovaries.
What are my options? I don’t want a hysterectomy!
Many of my patients do not want to undergo a major surgery
such as a hysterectomy to resolve their heavy bleeding. Fortunately, at
present, there are many options for treatment which are effective and
convenient.
Usually, the first option offered and considered is drug
therapy. Birth control pills, patches or vaginal rings contain hormones which
can regulate your bleeding. These methods are effective to control bleeding
about 50% of the time and need to be continued to remain effective. Some of the
side effects of these hormonal options are headaches, nausea, abdominal bloating
and breast tenderness.
If drug therapy is not effective or if you are not a
candidate for hormonal management, minimal surgery involving a dilation and
curettage (D & C) is a second option. A D&C involves scraping the lining of the
uterus to allow for a temporary solution to your bleeding problem. Yet if your
bleeding persists, a new, effective treatment option is endometrial ablation.
What is “endometrial ablation”?
In simple terms, it is a technique to resolve your bleeding
problem! In more technical terms, endometrial ablation consists of a minimally
invasive surgical technique to remove the uterine lining (endometrium) using an
electrosurgical tool or laser. Various methods of endometrial ablation are
presently available which destroy the uterine lining using heated fluid,
freezing temperatures, or controlled electrical energy .
Usually each of these techniques will be reviewed with you and decision will be
made by you and your doctor.
What makes these techniques so exciting is their remarkable
efficacy. Endometrial ablation techniques are effective in reducing bleeding in
approximately 90% of patients! The procedure is performed at an out-patient
surgery facility, requires minimal anesthesia and requires little recovery
time. Most women return to work within 1 day of surgery and satisfaction rate
approaches 90%. In our practice, approximately 95% of patients were
extremely satisfied with this procedure! In very few patients (< 5%),
endometrial ablation was not successful and a hysterectomy was required due to
large fibroids or adenomyosis (non-cancerous abnormality of the uterine lining).
What are the benefits of endometrial ablation?
Basically, the major benefit is resolution of your heavy
bleeding. In addition, many patients experience decreased menstrual
pain/bloating. Monthly bleeding days and amount are decreased by an average of
50-60%, and approximately 40% of patients will have no more bleeding at all!
Because of this, the satisfaction rate for my patients is so high. In
controlled clinical studies using these techniques, over 90% of patients had
their bleeding reduced to light or moderate periods, and 41% reported that their
bleeding had completely stopped! The ability to control and potentially stop
heavy vaginal bleeding has been a true godsend for many patients.
Additional benefits proven in clinical trials include
relief of PMS symptoms (45% reduction), as well as decreased menstrual pain
(approximately 65% reduction).
What are the risks to endometrial ablation?
This procedure is usually performed in an outpatient
surgical center, requires minimal anesthesia and takes only minutes to perform.
You may choose to be awake (mild sedation) during the procedure, and general
anesthesia is not required. Usually during the procedure, a local
anesthetic is injected around the cervix, and you may experience minimal uterine
cramping. Risks of the procedure include infection, bleeding, perforation of
the uterus and possible injury to surrounding organs. These risks should be
reviewed with you in detail before the procedure.
After the procedure, you may experience some mild uterine
cramping for 1-2 hours and will have a watery discharge for 2-3 weeks. This
temporary discharge represents the treated lining of your uterus which is being
sloughed and usually causes no personal discomfort. Many of my patients only
require using a panti-liner for 2 weeks to control this temporary post-operative
discharge.
How can I sign up for a consultation for this
procedure?!
For more information regarding endometrial ablation
techniques, please visit the following websites:
www.novasure.com
www.pacificcoastwomenshealth.com
Procedure offering simpler treatment for heavy periods
(from the North County Times October 23, 2006)
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