Degenerative fibroids can cause painful symptoms such as acute pelvic pain that appears to come and go in a cycle. Today we are going to talk about this condition that women who are diagnosed with fibroids may encounter.
We will discuss what fibroid degeneration is, why it occurs, the best way to treat the symptoms, and how to stop the cycle of degenerating leiomyomas.
Facts About Fibroids
Approximately 80% of all women will experience fibroids in their lifetime but many of them will be asymptomatic and the condition will go unnoticed. Uterine fibroids, also called leiomyomas are non-cancerous tumors that grow on or within the walls of the uterus and are composed of the same muscular and fibrous tissue as the uterus.
Experts do not fully understand what causes fibroids to develop, but they have learned that certain conditions can affect how susceptible a woman is to experiencing them. Research has shown that fibroid growth is driven by hormones, and we also know that they need a blood source to stay alive. They attach themselves to one of the vast array of blood vessels that are part of the uterine artery. Fibroids that grow large or numerous, can cause an abundance of unpleasant symptoms including:
- Abnormal or heavy bleeding during the menstrual cycle;
- A feeling of fullness or bloating in the lower abdomen;
- Lower back, buttock, leg pain;
- Need to urinate frequently, occasionally leak urine;
- Pain or pressure during intercourse;
- Infertility;
- Complications during pregnancy or delivery.
Explaining Fibroid Degeneration
Degenerative fibroids can occur if fibroids outgrow their blood supply. Simply stated, when a fibroid requires a larger blood supply than it is receiving, it begins to die or degenerate. The fibroid starts shrinking down to a size that the current blood supply can feed.
A few things that happen when a fibroid is going through the degeneration process are that it can become smaller and softer and cause your normal fibroid symptoms to ease up for a while. It will continue to reduce in size until its current blood supply is able to meet its needs, and then it will begin to grow again. Initially, the size of the fibroid decreases but usually, they grow back, and often to a larger size. Then this cycle starts all over again causing uncomfortable and sometimes debilitating symptoms to flare up intermittently. The pain associated with fibroid degeneration can last from a few days to a few weeks and as long as there is a blood supply connected to the fibroid, this cycle can continue.
Sometimes, during pregnancy, women with fibroids will experience a form of fibroid degeneration called necrobiosis, which can cause severe pain in the abdomen and bleeding. Research has shown that this happens because fibroids grow in response to estrogen exposure, and during the first three months of pregnancy, a woman’s hormone levels increase substantially. This increase in estrogen can cause existing fibroids to rapidly grow, become too large for their current blood supply, and begin to degenerate.
Fibroids that are caught in a cycle of degeneration and are no longer causing symptoms are not gone; they have just become temporarily dormant. Some type of degenerative fibroid treatment will be necessary to permanently stop the cycle.
Symptoms of Degenerated Fibroids
A woman may be unaware she has fibroids until she experiences the more severe symptoms associated with fibroid degeneration. Symptoms can happen gradually over a period of time, or they can come on suddenly. Fibroid degeneration symptoms are:
- Sudden, severe abdominal pain, often localized to one side or quadrant of the pelvis
- Abdominal swelling, bloating
- Fever
Fibroids can grow within the muscle of the uterus or can be attached via a “stem” or stalk-like structure and therefore are called pedunculated fibroids. Pedunculated fibroids are more likely to degenerate and, in rare cases, can result in a medical emergency where the stalk becomes twisted and completely blocks the blood flow to the fibroid.
Related: “Do I Need to Be Worried, I Was Told I Have Calcified Fibroids?”
Relief From Uterine Fibroid Degeneration
The only way to stop the cycle of degenerative fibroids is to eliminate the fibroids. Most OB/GYNs will suggest a surgical procedure as a degenerative fibroids treatment, but the Atlanta Fibroid Center has a much less invasive treatment that is performed by an interventional radiologist.
A uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) is a minimally invasive non-surgical procedure performed by an interventional radiologist and is safe and effective for eliminating fibroids permanently. UFE takes about an hour to complete and it is done as an outpatient, so you can go home the same day. During the procedure, a thin, hollow catheter will be placed into your upper thigh through a very tiny incision and this catheter will be used to deposit tiny granules into the small vessels that the fibroids have created to siphon off blood from the uterine artery.
The procedure cuts off the blood supply to the fibroids preventing them from getting the nutrients they require causing them to shrink and die off. They will not be able to regenerate because their blood supply has been permanently blocked and will result in degenerating leiomyomas. They will be permanently softer, smaller fibroids that will no longer cause symptoms.
Major benefits of UFE are the preservation of your uterus, much fewer complications than a surgical procedure (i.e. hysterectomy or myomectomy), and a much shorter recovery (5-7 days vs. 6-8 weeks).
UFE Has Two Big Advantages Over Any Surgical Fibroid Procedure
- It can treat any fibroid that is attached to the uterine artery, regardless of where the fibroid is growing. It can even eliminate the ones that are growing deep in the muscular walls of the uterus that a myomectomy may be unable to reach.
- It does not compromise the integrity of your uterus, nor does it require your uterus to be removed from your body, like hysterectomy surgery. A woman’s uterus is linked to many health conditions, and research has shown that women who undergo hysterectomies have long-term side effects. The younger the woman is when her uterus is removed, the more at risk she is for serious long-term side effects such as heart conditions, strokes, and memory issues, just to name a few
What Is The Recovery After You Use UFE As A Degenerative Fibroids Treatment?
After your procedure, you will be sent home with only one small bandaid on your upper thigh. You will be given a few prescriptions and instructions on how to take care of yourself and what to expect as your fibroids shrink.
UFE basically kills degenerative fibroids by shutting off their life source. Every fibroid, whether it is already degenerating or not, will be treated and begin the process of shrinking and softening. The first few days after treatment can be quite uncomfortable, especially if you have a large amount of fibroids or big fibroids.
The good news is that you will be sent home with medication that will help you get through these uncomfortable days, and then you will never have to deal with the symptoms of fibroids or fibroid degeneration again. The cycle will be broken, and you can live your life without having to plan around your next fibroid attack.
Statistically, 90 percent of women report a great improvement in symptoms or complete relief by the 3-month follow-up visit. For women 45 years of age and older, this will likely be the only procedure they’ll ever need for their fibroids. This is in contrast to a myomectomy which has an 11% recurrence per year! Therefore, over half of myomectomy patients will need a second procedure within 5 years of the myomectomy surgery.
Choosing Degenerative Fibroid Treatment At The Atlanta Fibroid Center?
Every woman’s experience with fibroids can be unique and their symptoms may vary. Even if your symptoms have subsided, for the time being, it may mean the fibroid degeneration cycle is just on “pause” for the moment. The most reliable way to find and treat fibroids is by getting a medical opinion from an expert in treating uterine fibroids.
Dr. John Lipman, MD, FSIR, founded the Atlanta Fibroid Center over twenty-five years ago, where he performed the first UFE procedure in Georgia. He completed his medical training at Georgetown, followed by a radiology residency at Harvard, and then a fellowship in vascular & interventional radiology at Yale before moving to Atlanta. He earned the esteemed title of FSIR, which only a small fraction of interventional radiologists ever achieve. He has performed over 10,000 UFE procedures and has many patient testimonials.
If you are suffering from fibroids, make an appointment to see one of the nation’s leading fibroid experts, John C. Lipman, MD, FSIR, Founder & Medical Director of the Atlanta Fibroid Center, by calling (770) 953-2600, or make an appointment online.
