May 04, 2007
Cryoablation: An Office Treatment for Heavy Menstrual Bleeding
DAVENPORT, IOWA - Women who suffer from excessive menstrual bleeding can now find relief from a minimally invasive therapy that freezes and removes the inner lining of the uterus.
A normal menstrual cycle occurs about every 28 days and lasts less than seven days. However for millions of women, menstrual periods can last longer than a week and be accompanied by profuse bleeding, clotting and severe cramping. The condition, called menorrhagia, accounts for about one-third of all referrals to gynecologists.
Many women with excessive bleeding eventually receive hysterectomies, accounting for as many as 600,000 hysterectomies performed in the U.S. each year.
“More than half of women with menorrhagia will undergo hysterectomy within five years,” explained OB/GYN Dr. Richard Kishiue of Genesis Health Group. “Hysterectomy can be an option if medical management fails, however a more conservative approach is now available.”
A new surgical therapy called the Her Option® Cryoablation Therapy System uses cryogenic technology to freeze and remove the inner lining of the uterus, the tissue responsible for excessive bleeding. The approach allows the uterus itself to be spared, but should not be performed in women who desire future pregnancies.
“The Her Option® therapy offers a safe and effective, less-invasive alternative to hysterectomy for women who have completed childbearing,” Dr. Kishiue said. “The cryoablation procedure has the advantage of being performed in the office instead of an outpatient procedure in a hospital.“
In-office comfort
Her Option® works via a slender probe, attached to a cooling unit that is inserted vaginally through the cervix and into the uterus. The tip of the probe is brought to a very low temperature to freeze and eliminate the uterine lining. The therapy is guided and monitored using ultrasound.
“Once the probe is properly inserted, the procedure takes approximately 20 minutes to complete,” Dr. Kishiue said. “It results in eliminating or reducing the amount of uterine lining shed during menses.“
Most women have only minimal discomfort during the procedure, largely because of the natural anesthesia effects of cold. Unlike hospital procedures, the cryoablation procedure does not require an anesthetic. Most patients return to normal activity the next day.
Cryoablation is an alternative to thermal ablation, which uses energy or heat to destroy the uterine lining and generally requires some form of anesthesia. Her Option® uses cold temperatures to eliminate the uterine lining, and because cold is a natural pain killer, anesthesia generally is not needed. Unlike some thermal ablation procedures, Her Option® also does not require cervical dilation or painful enlargement of the uterus, he added.
Approximately 96 percent of patients would recommend the cryoablation procedure to friends and tolerate it with only slight discomfort.
Life-changing
In his office, Dr. Kishiue has seen the procedure have a remarkable impact on women with unmanageable bleeding. Too often, many suffer in silence due to a lack of awareness of treatments or reluctance to discuss the problem.
“Some women have a really terrible time with this and are actually incapacitated during the time of menstruation,” Dr. Kishiue said. “I’ve had women tell me they are confined to the house because of the excessive bleeding. They’re reluctant to go out because of potentially embarrassing situations. Some women who are aging and heading toward menopause think heavy periods are normal. They don’t realize it doesn’t have to be that way.”
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