Pedunculated Fibroid
Pedunculated fibroids are fibroids which are attached by a stalk to the uterus; this stalk is known as a peduncle. Those pedunculated fibroids that appear on the outside of the uterus are known as subserous pedunculated fibroids, while those that appear inside the uterus are known as pedunculated submucosal fibroids.
They even grow big. Last year, I have seen the biggest fibroid case, reported in the East African Medical Journal. A 37 year old woman had an abdominal inflammation due to the large growth of this fibroid. Her surgeons diagnosed nearly 16 centimeters long and one and half a kilogram weighed fibroid.
But this woman did not have any other symptom expect swelling. But many are not so lucky with their pedunculated fibroids.
In some women, submucosal pedunculated fibroids extend into the vaginal canal, which causes distress during sexual intercourse. Two patients treated by the American University of Beirut Medical Center were found to have such fibroids. A full 12 cm of one patients submucosal fibroid had grown into the vaginal canal, while the rest of the growth remained in her uterus.
Pedunculated fibroids can be painful, particularly if the peduncle becomes twisted. The risk of the peduncle twisting increases as the fibroid grows larger.
Other painful symptoms that are often associated with these fibroids are uterine cramps, as well as pressure on the uterus along with other organs.
Some women with pedunculated submucosal fibroids experience light to moderate bleeding throughout their menstrual cycles. Those women who experience continuous bleeding usually see an increase in bleeding during the time of their regular period.
Often when the pedunculated fibroid has become severely twisted it will require surgical intervention. This occurs because the pain level becomes so great to the woman experiencing it that they will do anything to stop it.
A twisted peduncle can also create a blockage in the veins that deliver blood and nutrients to the growth. When the blood and nutrients are cut off, the fibroid begins to weaken. As the fibroid deteriorates, the pain increases greatly, as does the risk of infection.
Uterine Artery Embolization is a procedure often recommended whenever the peduncle reaches a width of 2 centimetres or more. This procedure serves the purpose of blocking the blood supply to the fibroids, thus impeding growth and causing them to decrease in size and eventually die. The University of Toronto, however, has reported that pedunculated subserousal fibroids were more likely to be effected by Uterine Artery Embolization than other types of fibroids.
Doctors at the Bretonneau Hospital in France have found that up to 10% of patients who undergo Uterine Artery Embolization for pedunculated fibroids encounter regrowth of their fibroids after 2 years. For this reason, they recommend that the procedure be repeated after 2 years.
Another common treatment for pedunculated fibroids is Myomectomy. A procedure in which the fibroid is surgically removed and the uterus repaired by the surgeon. This surgery does not, however, have a 100% success rate as Doctors at the University of South Dakota have reported a case where they attempted a myomectomy on a patient. The woman had experienced a ruptured blood vessel in a large pedunculated fibroid while giving birth. The attempted myomectomy was unsuccessful, and they were forced to perform an emergency hysterectomy instead.
Often prior to a myomectomy the woman is required to sign an agreement to allow a hysterectomy to be performed should anything go wrong during the procedure, so women that undergo this procedure sometimes wake up without a uterus.
Related posts:
- Submucosal Fibroids The growth of submucosal fibroid. occur just below the endometrium...
- Intramural Fibroids An intramural fibroid develops in the middle of the uterine...
- What Are Subserous Fibroids The uterus can appear bigger than normal when subserous fibroids...
- How to Treat Fibroids For some women, the intense pain of uterine fibroids, or...
- Symptoms of Fibroids Most women are unaware that they have uterine fibroids, a...
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