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If your fibroid pain symptoms are extremely hard to bear, you might be considering getting treatment. While natural treatment options are effective for women who have mild fibroid pain, those with more severe side effects may need surgery. Here is an overview of surgical treatments for uterine fibroids!
Myomectomy:
A myomectomy refers to when fibroids, or myomas, are removed from the uterus through surgery. In this procedure, the uterus is not removed and is often the best option for women who seek to get pregnant in the future. There are several types of myomectomies that vary in terms of invasiveness and post-surgery recovery.
In a hysteroscopic myomectomy, no incision is made in the body and an instrument is inserted into the vagina to look for fibroids and polyps. Submucosal fibroids are most easily spotted in this type of myomectomy, and the instrument is used to remove them from a uterus. Since this treatment is minimally invasive, there is a very short recovery time and many patients can go home immediately afterwards.
In a laparoscopic myomectomy, incisions are made in the pelvis and used to look and remove fibroids. MRIs are typically conducted beforehand so that the surgeon has a good idea of the size and location of the fibroids. As this type of treatment is more invasive, patients may spend a day in the hospital and typically recover completely in 2-4 weeks.
Abdominal myomectomies are performed through incisions in the abdomen and can detect/remove larger fibroids. While this procedure is the most invasive of myomectomies, it is also often the most successful and thorough. Patients can expect to spend a couple days in the hospital and full recovery can take up to six weeks.
Hysterectomy:
If symptoms are extremely severe, a woman might be considering a hysterectomy, as it is the only procedure that can remove all fibroids and prevent symptoms from returning. However, as it does remove part or all of your uterus, you will not be able to have children following the surgery.
Hysterectomies can be performed through abdominal incisions, your vagina, or smaller pelvic incisions. An abdominal hysterectomy will typically require the most recovery time, and full recovery from any type of hysterectomy could take 6-8 weeks as your body adjusts to not having a uterus.
Endometrial Ablation:
For women with smaller fibroids, endometrial ablation may be a viable treatment option too. Although it is not surgery, this procedure will burn off some of your uterine lining and can relieve heavy bleeding symptoms. This procedure is not for women who want to become pregnant, but can be effective for those who do not want surgery and want a shorter recovery of up to two weeks.
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80% of the adult female population has experienced hormonal imbalance at one point in their life that affected not only their physical health but also their mental health. Coping with pain, infertility, anxiety, depression, body image issues, and, on top of this, judgment is the heavy load most of these women have to bear each day and an important problem we need to tackle as a society.
