Uterine fibroids - clinical presentation and complications

Abstract

Fibroids are the most common benign tumors of the genital organs in women of childbearing age. In some women, fibroids can be present for years without any symptoms and then are discovered accidentally during a gynecological examination. In others, they can cause significant morbidity and necessitate the need for multiple surgical procedures. The scope of this clinical review is to provide information about the clinical data as well as the complications of uterine fibroids and their clinical presentation. The most common symptoms that may occur in women with uterine fibroids include: bleeding (menometrorrhagia, metrorrhagia or intermenstrual bleeding), pain, symptoms of compression of adjacent structures, changed appearance of the abdomen and infertility. Complications of uterine fibroids include: venous thromboembolism, torsion of pedunculated fibroids, acute urinary retention and renal insufficiency, vaginal and intraabdominal bleeding, mesenteric vein thrombosis and gangrene of the intestine. Complications of uterine fibroids fibroids are rare and though they may cause significant morbidity, and rarely, mortality, which indicates the need for further research in this area. Accurate diagnosis is an essential prerequisite for the evaluation of therapeutic options, especially recently, when medical and numerous non-invasive treatment options have become available.