Abstract
ABSTRACTObjective To evaluate improvement in quality of life, reduction of uterine volume, and the correlation between these two variables after uterine fibroid embolization.Methods Data on quality of life before and after uterine fibroid embolization were collected from 60 patients using the Uterine Fibroid Symptom – Quality of Life questionnaire. In 40 of these patients, uterine volume information on magnetic resonance imaging examinations performed before and after uterine fibroid embolization was collected, and compared using the nonparametric Wilcoxon test for paired data. Correlation between quality of life and uterine volume before and after procedure was measured using Spearman’s correlation coefficient.Results There was significant improvement in quality of life after uterine fibroid embolization on Uterine Fibroid Symptom – Quality of Life questionnaire, in both subscales scores and the total score. There was a significant median reduction of -37.4% after uterine fibroid embolization, but no correlations between uterine volume and quality of life scores were found before or after embolization.Conclusion Uterine embolization is an alternative to treat uterine fibroids, resulting in relief of symptoms and better quality of life. Although reduction in uterine volume plays an important role in the evaluation of therapeutic success, it does not necessarily have a definitive correlation with relief of symptoms.
Highlights
Uterine fibroids, called leiomyomas or fibroids, are the most prevalent tumors in gynecology
There are few accounts of the Brazilian experience on this issue, but none evaluating quality of life using a specific and validated instrument.[13]. In view of the poorer quality of life of symptomatic fibroid patients, and the increasing indications of therapeutic embolization, we evaluated the improvement in quality of life after the procedure
❚❚RESULTS Quality of life The scores for the symptom severity subscale, quality of life subscales, and total score of the Uterine Fibroid Symptom – Quality of Life (UFS-QoL) questionnaire applied to 60 patients were calculated according to the validated questionnaire for the Brazilian Portuguese. here was a significant improvement (p
Summary
Called leiomyomas or fibroids, are the most prevalent tumors in gynecology. Literature shows the prevalence of fibroids can reach up to 77%, with estimates of 6.5 tumors per affected uterus. Some factors such as age, parity, obesity, and ethnicity have been associated with a higher prevalence of fibroids. Two or more affected firstdegree relatives lead to an increase in its frequency of up to 2.2 times.[1]. The main signs and symptoms that are usually caused by fibroids are menstrual changes, such as menorrhagia and/or metrorrhagia, resulting in anemia. There are cases of intermenstrual bleeding, which tend to cause compressive symptoms, pain, and anatomical distortion of adjacent organs.[2]
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