Uterine leiomyomas, also known as myomas or fibroids, are benign growths within the uterus. It is thought that fibroids exist in 50-75% of women, however, fewer than half of these cause symptoms.
Fibroids are the most common tumors in the female pelvis and are responsible for one third to one half of the 600,000 hysterectomies performed in the U.S. each year.
Fibroids rarely become cancerous. In fact, it is thought to occur in no more than .1% of all fibroids. Uterine leiomyomas are not to be confused with leiomyosarcomas, which are malignant uterine tumors that usually affect post-menopausal women. The two conditions are totally unrelated.
The goals of care are the minimization of complications such as anemia, pain, and infertility while maintaining fertility in women who so desire.
Because most women have no symptoms, the majority are appropriately managed with observation alone. The subsequent worsening of symptoms or the development of other complications would warrant further consideration.
Treatment options include medications, radiologic procedures such as Uterine Artery Embolization and surgery.
This MediFocus Guide contains an extensive listing of citations and abstracts of recent journal articles that have been published about this condition in trustworthy medical journals. This is the same type of information that is available to physicians and other health care professionals. A partial selection of journal articles that are abstracted in this MediFocus Guide includes:
Uterine fibroid embolization. American Family Physician. 2000
Pre-operative GnRH analogue therapy before hysterectomy or myomectomy for uterine fibroids. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews [computer file]. 2000
An agenda for research into uterine artery embolization: results of an expert panel conference. Journal of Vascular & Interventional Radiology. 2000
Uterine artery embolisation for symptomatic fibroids. Medical Journal of Australia. 2000
Smooth muscle, endometrial stromal, and mixed Mullerian tumors of the uterus. Modern Pathology. 2000
Lumbosacral radiculopathy secondary to metastatic uterine leiomyosarcoma: a case report. Spine. 2000
Role of vaginal sonography and hysterosonography in the endoscopic treatment of uterine myomas. Fertility & Sterility. 2000
Leiomyoma of the ciliary body extending to the anterior chamber: clinicopathologic and ultrasound biomicroscopic correlation. Survey of Ophthalmology. 2000
The pathology of uterine smooth muscle tumors and mixed endometrial stromal-smooth muscle tumors: a selective review with emphasis on recent advances. International Journal of Gynecological Pathology. 2000
Ambulatory management of uterine leiomyomata. Clinical Obstetrics & Gynecology. 1999
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