Uterine fibroids are a common gynecological disease that usually goes unnoticed by patients. Often, patients need to undergo physical examinations and other means to detect them. Therefore, understanding the symptoms and diagnostic methods of uterine fibroids is very important for female friends. This article will introduce the definition, etiology, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of uterine fibroids to help female friends better understand this common disease and improve their awareness of self-protection.
What is uterine fibroid?
Uterine fibroids, also known as uterine smooth muscle tumors or uterine fibroids, refer to benign tumors that occur in the smooth muscle of the female uterus and are one of the most common tumors in the female reproductive system. Uterine myoma has a high incidence rate in gynecological diseases.
The causes of uterine fibroids are currently not fully understood. At present, it is believed that there is a genetic predisposition, as there are reports of a family history and reduced antibody levels being one of the causes of uterine fibroids. There are some factors that can exacerbate the occurrence of uterine fibroids, such as age, fertility status, hormone levels, and weight.
Symptoms of uterine fibroids
1. Menstrual changes: Menstrual changes are the most common symptoms, manifested as shortened menstrual cycle, increased menstrual flow, prolonged menstrual period, irregular vaginal bleeding, etc.
2. Abdominal lump and pain: Abdominal swelling, palpable mass in the lower abdomen, accompanied by a feeling of falling and lower back pain.
3. Increased vaginal discharge: Increased vaginal discharge can sometimes result in a large amount of purulent and bloody discharge, as well as the discharge of necrotic tissue with a foul odor.
4. Compression symptoms: fibroids grow forward or backward, which can compress the bladder, urethra or rectum, causing frequent urination, dysuria, urinary retention or constipation.
5. Infertility: Fibroids compress the fallopian tubes, causing them to twist, or deform the uterine cavity, which hinders the implantation of fertilized eggs and leads to infertility.
Diagnosis of uterine fibroids
1. Medical history inquiry;
2. Physical examination: including uterine size, hardness, and position;
3. Ultrasound examination: It can check the location, size, shape, quantity, and blood supply of uterine fibroids;
4. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): can accurately diagnose size, location, morphology, and internal structure;
5. Transvaginal endoscopic examination: It can observe the condition of the endometrium, muscle layer, and cervix, and can be combined with ultrasound, CT, and MRI to improve diagnostic accuracy.
Treatment of uterine fibroids
1. Drug therapy: Drug therapy mainly achieves treatment goals by regulating endocrine function, reducing the size of the tumor, and alleviating symptoms such as menstrual disorders and abdominal pain;
2. Minimally invasive surgery: removing or excising uterine fibroids while preserving the uterus can achieve the best therapeutic effect;
3. Interventional therapy: Interventional therapy uses catheter technology as a means, utilizing some physical principles to introduce the catheter into the uterine blood vessels for hemostasis or completely cutting off effective blood supply to achieve the treatment goal.
Prevention of uterine fibroids
To prevent the occurrence of uterine fibroids, the following measures can be taken:
1. Maintain physical health: It is important to maintain good health, ensure sufficient sleep, avoid staying up late, maintain a normal weight, exercise moderately, and reduce mental stress to prevent uterine fibroids.
2. Continuous monitoring of uterine condition: Especially for women with a family history of fibroids and who have undergone surgical removal of uterine fibroids, annual uterine ultrasound examination should be performed to detect and treat early, which can effectively prevent the deterioration of fibroids.
3. Reasonable eating habits: Maintain reasonable eating habits and mix food reasonably, such as eating more fiber rich foods such as vegetables, fruits, whole wheat bread, brown rice, etc., and adding plant proteins such as beans and soy products to the diet. These can help digest and metabolize fibroids and prevent the occurrence of some diseases in the body.
4. Avoid hormone therapy: Avoid unnecessary hormone therapy, such as oral contraceptives, as long-term use can affect endocrine regulation and lead to the development of uterine fibroids.
5. Maintain a happy mood: Patients with uterine fibroids should pay attention to regulating their emotions in daily life, prevent anger and sadness, overthinking and overthinking. They should try to be content and happy, have an outgoing and open-minded personality, and avoid excessive fatigue. This way, the five organs can be harmonious, the qi flow can be relaxed, the blood flow can be harmonious, and the qi and blood flow can prevent all diseases from arising.
In addition, patients should pay attention to regulating sexual activity to prevent damage to kidney qi and worsening of the condition. More attention should be paid to sexual hygiene and maintaining cleanliness of the external genitalia to prevent the invasion of external pathogens and internal heat, stagnation of qi and blood, and worsening of the condition.
In summary, uterine fibroids are a gynecological disease. With the improvement of quality of life, more and more women are realizing the importance of physical health. Symptoms caused by uterine fibroids, especially abnormal bleeding during menstruation, can seriously affect women's physical health. Therefore, if patients experience relevant symptoms, they need to seek medical attention in a timely manner and undergo regular gynecological examinations. Especially for patients with a high family history of the disease, regular follow-up examinations are necessary to detect and treat uterine fibroids early and avoid potential adverse effects.