A lot of women wonder just precisely what uterine fibroids are. Uterine fibroids can trigger heavy bleeding, pain, and pelvic pain. They’re normally non-cancerous tumors that develop within the uterus, and 15-20 percent of women in their reproductive years and 30-40 percent of women older than 30 might suffer from uterine fibroids.
Why must women know about fibroids?
Uterine fibroids are the most prevalent pelvic tumor, but the cause of uterine fibroid tumors is unknown. Not all women with fibroids experience symptoms; nevertheless some women have pelvic pain and have substantial menstrual bleeding. In addition, fibroids can location pressure on the bladder, triggering frequent urination.
Fibroids might grow as a single growth or in groups. Fibroids vary in size from very tiny to eight inches in diameter.
The growth of a uterine fibroid normally depends on the hormone estrogen. Once a woman develops a uterine fibroid, the fibroid usually continues to grow throughout her menstruation years.
Women who do not experience symptoms associated with their fibroids could not need treatment. Fibroids could even shrink after menopause, but if heavy bleeding or if pelvic pain occurs, a hysterectomy could be needed. Uterine fibroids are the major reason hysterectomies are performed.
What is a hysterectomy?
A hysterectomy entails surgically removing the uterus, and occasionally the cervix and/or ovaries and fallopian tubes are also removed.
According to the Centers for Illness Control and Prevention, after cesarean section, hysterectomy is the second most often performed major surgical process for ladies of reproductive age in the United States. Approximately 600,000 hysterectomies are performed annually in the U.S., and an estimated 20 million U.S. women have had a hysterectomy.
Despite the fact that some women are wary of having surgery to relieve symptoms due to the fact of the down time they may experience, new technology is available that enables the removal of uterine fibroids and hysterectomies to be performed less invasively, leading to shorter hospital stays. For a hysterectomy that could be challenging to perform as a vaginal procedure and would otherwise require an abdominal hysterectomy, the “da Vinci® Surgical System” provides an option.
This new robotic technology provides numerous prospective advantages over conventional surgery, such as less pain and scarring, less risk of infection, and faster recovery. It also may decrease the risk of blood loss that can occur during a hysterectomy. This new technology is accessible to Collin County and other region residents at Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano, located near President George Bush Turnpike and Preston Road.
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