Focused ultrasound surgery for uterine fibroids

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Definition

By Mayo Clinic staff

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Illustration showing focused ultrasound surgery 
Focused ultrasound surgery

Focused ultrasound surgery is a treatment option for uterine fibroids — noncancerous growths of the uterus. The procedure is noninvasive and preserves your uterus. Focused ultrasound surgery — also called focused ultrasound ablation — is performed while you're inside a magnetic resonance (MR) scanner equipped with a high-energy ultrasound transducer for treatment.

During the procedure, MR images give your doctor the precise location of the uterine fibroids to be treated and the locations of nearby structures, such as the bowel and bladder, to be avoided. Then the ultrasound transducer is used to send focused sound waves (sonications) into the fibroid to heat and destroy small areas of tissue. A pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan is typically performed before treatment to determine whether you're a good candidate for focused ultrasound surgery.

References
  1. Hudson SB, et al. Magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound surgery. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2008;51:159.
  2. Haney AF. Leiomyomata. In: Gibb RS, et al. Danforth's Obstetrics and Gynecology. 10th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2008:916.
  3. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists. Alternatives to hysterectomy in the management of leiomyomas. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2008;112:387.
  4. Hesley GK, et al. Noninvasive treatment of uterine fibroids: Early Mayo Clinic experience with magnetic resonance imaging-guided focused ultrasound. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2006;81:936.
  5. Stewart EA, et al. Sustained relief of leiomyoma symptoms by using focused ultrasound surgery. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2007;110:279.
  6. Stewart EA, et al. Clinical outcomes of focused ultrasound surgery for the treatment of uterine fibroids. Fertility and Sterility. 2006;85:22.
  7. Fennessy FM, et al. Uterine leiomyomas: MR imaging-guided focused ultrasound surgery - Results of different treatment protocols. Radiology. 2007;243:885.
  8. Funaki K, et al. Clinical outcomes of magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound surgery for uterine myomas: 24-month follow-up. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2009;34:584.
  9. Rabinovici J, et al. Pregnancy outcome after magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound surgery (MRgFUS) for conservative treatment of uterine fibroids. Fertility and Sterility. 2010;1:199.
MY00503 March 31, 2011

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