hysterectomy
Hysterectomy Side Effects
Monday, December 28th, 2009As we approach the end of this decade, I am sad to report we are still performing almost 700,000 hysterectomies annually; 500,000 are for non-cancerous diseases like Fibroid Tumors, Endometriosis, and Adenomyosis. Many side effects associated with hysterectomy are irreversible and/or negative like: bladder incontinence, constipation, hormone imbalance and sexual dysfunction-no desire or feeling, as well as emotional and [...]
Uterine Artery Embolization (UAE or UFE)
Tuesday, October 20th, 2009Uterine artery embolization is a minimally invasive procedure often used to treat fibroid tumors. Small polyvinyl particles are injected into the uterine artery while the patient is under xray examination. The goal is to block the blood supply to the tumors so they eventually die off. The technique has been successful for small, single tumors and [...]
Preserving your Female Organs and Preventing Hysterectomy
Tuesday, August 25th, 2009Traditional medicine has routinely rcommended removal of the uterus, hysterectomy, for uterine and ovarian malignancy, however physicians also advocate hysterectomy for benign diseases like fibroids, adenomyosis, and endometriosis. Recent studies (LA Times article, published August 10, 2009 entitled “Staying Fertile after Cancer”) on Stage 1 ovarian cancer patients have found that preserving the uterus and [...]
Fertility after Ovarian Cancer-A New Study
Wednesday, August 19th, 2009Young women might be able to preserve their fertility despite a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Recent studies, based on a publication this month in Cancer, have found that 5 year survival rates are the same for both patients that remove all female organs (both ovaries and uterus) and those that only removed the affected ovary. This [...]
Complications associated with Hysterectomy
Thursday, May 7th, 2009The complications associated with a hysterectomy, removal of the uterus, are multiple. Up to 75% of women have negative long term effects after this procedure. Most commonly seen are hormone imbalance (even when ovaries are saved), depression, bladder problems with either incomplete emptying of urine or incontinence, constipation and sexual dysfunction. Short of cancer, and [...]
Hysterectomy-An Over-Rated Surgery
Tuesday, April 7th, 2009In my opinion, Hysterectomy, the removal of the uterus, is one of the most overrated surgical procedures in this country. Statistics indicate that we perform over 650,000 annually and 80% of those are for non-cancerous conditions like fibroids, adenomyosis and endometriosis. Many doctors will recommend hysterectomy simply to relieve monthly symptoms: heavy bleeding, pelvic pain, and abdominal [...]