Fibroids

Fibroids are growths of tissues attached to the muscle tissue of the uterine wall. They’re often located inside the muscles of the uterus or on the surface. In some cases they grow inside the uterus itself on a stalk. Very rarely the fibroids can grow into the cervix. Nobody knows what makes the tissue of the uterine muscles grow, but there is a tendency for fibroids to run in some families.
The vast majority of fibroids are benign, but they can give a woman a lot of problems and sometimes treatment is necessary.

Symptoms
The most common symptoms are:

• long and heavy or irregular periods, and usually painful
  
• a bearing-down sensation in the abdomen
• pain/discomfort during sex
• problems emptying your bladder.
  

Examination
We use ultrasound scan, a gynaecological examination combined with a keyhole examination of the uterus  (hysteroscopy) to find out if you have any fibroids. In most cases, we’ll also take a sample of the tissue from the uterus to rule out cell changes.

Treatment
Fibroids can be treated in various ways. It all depends on the location and size of the fibroids. The treatments include hormone treatment and keyhole surgery (hysteroscopy).