Generally, approximately eighty percent of women with uterine fibroids get to know that they have them by the time they are in their 50s. It is because not all fibroids have symptoms, but they can make it quite challenging for you to function normally for those that have symptoms. Therefore if you are having heavy periods or experiencing other possible fibroid symptoms, it is advisable you seek medical help from experienced specialists. That is why Houston’s interventional radiology clinic has board-certified specialists who offer fibroid removal treatments that aim at shrinking and reducing fibroid bleeding to end your symptoms faster.
What Are Uterine Fibroids?
Uterine fibroids are typically fibrous and muscle tissue growths found in the uterus. Generally, there exist four types of fibroids. The first one is intramurally referred to as muscle wall uterine fibroid. The second one is the subserosal which are fibroids found in the outermost layer of the uterus. Submucosal is the third type located in the innermost uterine line, and pedunculated is the last one known as the stalk-growing fibroid.
Even though uterine fibroids are not cancerous, they can still lead to some considerable problems like long periods and heavy bleeding. Typically, a fibroid can be as large as a grapefruit or small as an apple seed but can also be anywhere in between. In other cases, they also occur in clusters. In most cases, women usually get uterine fibroids in their 30s, 40s, or 50s and are also uncommon after menopause.
What Are Some of the Signs of Fibroids?
Uterine fibroids can be asymptomatic, and most women usually know that they got them during their annual or routine wellness examination. However, uterine fibroids can cause a variety of concerns, including bloating, clotting, periods over a week-long, anemia, painful periods, leg pain, constipation, fatigue, backache, frequent feeling of pelvic pressure, pain during sex, and frequent urination or urinary incontinence. They also cause heavy menstrual bleeding that may require both tampons and pads or changing tampons or pads after every two hours. In most cases, if you have uterine fibroids, you may be six times more likely to have a Caesarean section when you are having a baby. At times fibroids can also cause infertility in some cases.
Although the cause of uterine fibroids is not yet known, a combination of several factors leads to their occurrence. These factors are weight, hormones, age, genetic, and ethnicity increase the risk and severity of symptoms. But it is not yet very clear why some women with uterine fibroids usually experience more severe symptoms than others.
Additional factors include:
- Lifestyle
At times environmental habits may also impact the occurrence of fibroids. Some of the habits include lack of exercise, alcohol consumption, and toxins that might affect your uterus.
- Reproduction
It is essential to note that there are fewer incidents of uterine fibroids in women who have already given birth because pregnancy may protect one against them because of uterine changes that occur during childbirth.
In summary, if you are interested in learning more about uterine fibroids, call or visit Alate Health today for more information.
