Menstrual Disorders - Highlights

Highlights

Research

• Low-dose oral contraceptives may help reduce adolescent menstrual pain, according to a 2005 study published in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Teenage girls who received a low-dose combination of estradiol and levonogestrol reported fewer days of pain and less severe pain than girls who received placebo.
• A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggested that 60% of women who use the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) are able to avoid hysterectomy. The LNG-IUS may be a particularlyeffective alternative to surgery for women who have heavy menstrual bleeding (menorrhagia). Several recent studies indicate the LNG-IUS improves quality of life as much as hysterectomy, but without the costs and complications associated with surgery. Another study, published in Obstetrics and Gynecology, found that the benefits of the LNG-IUS were comparable to those of endometrial resection.
• Microwave endometrial ablation may work better than transcervical resection of the endometrium for patients with heavy periods. A 2005 study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology compared long-term results of the two surgical techniques and found that women who received ablation were more satisfied with the treatment and more likely to recommend it than women who received resection. Five years after surgery, fewer women in the ablation group required hysterectomy than women in the resection group.
• Pre-treatment with hormonal drugs may not be required before microwave endometrial ablation, suggests a 2005 study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Many women who have ablation are pre-treated several weeks before surgery with drugs that thin the endometrium. These drugs, however, can have uncomfortable side effects. The British study found that the surgery was equally successful with or without drug pre-treatment.