Are fibroids serious?

Hey there! This is Dr Manu, consultant Gynecologist in Chennai.

At the outset, I would like to welcome you to Dr Manu’s Gynecology Clinic. So, in this blog post we are going to discuss about uterus size during pregnancy. I know a lot of you have a LOTS of questions regarding this topic, so take a deep breath and start reading!

So here is the thing,

fibroids also called leiomyomas are non cancerous tissue that are basically made up of muscle and fibrous tissue. Most fibroids do not produce any kind of symptoms. A small proportion of women though, do experience symptoms and these are

• Pain and heavy periods
• Pain in the abdomen
• Urinary urgency
• Pain during intercourse

In rarer instances, fibroids may also cause infertility issues. Why do fibroids actually develop? To tell you the truth, no one really knows why!. But the development of fibroids has been linked to oestrogen, which is a very important female reproductive hormone. Oestrogen is a hormone produced by the female gonads (ovaries). Thus fibroids usually form during the early reproductive years.

Nearing menopause or with increasing age, as the levels of oestrogen comes down; fibroids usually tend to shrink.

Most fibroids do not require any treatment.

Who is at risk of developing fibroids?

Women in the age group of 25 to 45 years and obese women. Interestingly, women who have borne children have a lower incidence of fibroids! (motherhood is awesome right?) Next we will discuss about the types of fibroids.

There are 3 main types of fibroids :

• Intramural fibroids – These fibroids usually develop in the muscle wall of the uterus.
• Subserosal fibroids – These fibroids develop in the outside wall of the uterus into the pelvis and can become quite large
• Sub mucosal fibroid – These fibroids grow into the uterine cavity as the y develop beneath the wombs lining
• Pedunculated fibroid – In some instances, a fibroid may get attached to the womb with a narrows stalk, in these cases its called a pedunculated fibroid

Fibroid treatment To be honest, there are numerous treatment options for fibroids ranging from hormonal medications to surgical options. Most fibroids usually go away on their own, but in some instances where there is severe bleeding associated with the fibroid removal surgery treatment is definitely recommended.

So, I hope you enjoyed reading this short post on fibroids. Please do share this post will mom’s to be and do subscribe to us!

Yours with lots of love

Manu

References

Stewart EA. Uterine fibroids. The Lancet. 2001 Jan 27;357(9252):293-8.

Bulun SE. Uterine fibroids. New England Journal of Medicine. 2013 Oct 3;369(14):1344-55.