Our doctors have had a lot of experience discussing fibroids and uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) with patients who are unfamiliar with medical terminology. However, you may feel more comfortable if you have at least a passing familiarity with the common medical terms you may encounter when researching fibroids and your treatment options. If any of these terms are confusing or unclear to you, please feel free to talk to our doctors for more information.
Fibroids are also known as uterine leiomyomas, fibromyomas, fibromas, myofibromas, and myomas.
Symptoms
menorrhagia or hypermenorrhea - profuse or prolonged uterine bleeding
Diagnosis
manual exam - the standard exam performed at annual well-visits in which the physician inserts two fingers into the vagina and uses a hand on the belly right above the pelvic bone to feel for the position and size of the uterus.
ultrasound - non-invasive exam using very high frequency sound to create an image of the inside of the uterus.
MRI (magnetic resonance imagery) - non-invasive exam that can produce very detailed pictures of the uterus.
laparoscope - small camera on the end of a tube used to provide a view inside the body.
hysteroscopy - examination of the uterus via a camera on the end of a tube inserted through the vagina and cervix into the uterus.
myomectomy - surgical procedure in which individual fibroids (myomas) are removed.
hysterectomy - surgical procedure in which the uterus is removed.
uterine fibroid embolization - minimally invasive procedure in which the blood supply to fibroids is cut off.
Types of Fibroids
intramural - fibroids entirely contained inside the wall of the uterus. These are the most common type of fibroids.
subserous or subserosal - fibroids that grow on the outer edge of the uterine wall, pushing into the abdominal cavity.
submucous or submucosal - fibroids that grown on the inner edge of the uterine wall, pushing into the uterine cavity. These are the least common type of fibroids.
pedunculated - subserous or submucous fibroids that grow on a stalk, extending into the abdominal cavity or the uterine cavity.
sessile - subserous or submucous fibroids that are not pedunculated.
Treatments