About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Definition
By Mayo Clinic staff
Uterine polyps are growths attached to inner wall of the uterus and protruding into the uterine cavity. Overgrowth of cells in the lining of the uterus (endometrium) leads to the formation of uterine polyps. The sizes of uterine polyps range from a few millimeters — no larger than a sesame seed — to several centimeters — golf ball sized or larger. They are attached to the uterine wall by a large base or a thin stalk.
You can have one or many uterine polyps. They usually stay contained within your uterus, but occasionally, they may slip down through the opening of the uterus into your vagina. Although they can happen in younger women, uterine polyps most commonly occur in women in their 40s and 50s.
- Ellenson LH, et al. The female genital tract. In: Kumar V, et al. Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/191233107-3/0/2060/258.html?tocnode=57531643&fromURL=258.html. Accessed March 25, 2010.
- Drinville JS, et al. Benign disorders of the uterine corpus. In: DeCherney AH, et al. Current Diagnosis & Treatment Obstetrics & Gynecology. 10th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2009. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aid=2389400. Accessed March 25, 2010.
- Stewart EA. Endometrial polyps. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 24, 2010.
- Hoffman BL. Abnormal uterine bleeding. In: Schorge JO, et al. Williams Gynecology. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aid=3153117. Accessed March 29, 2010.
- Hillard Adams PJ. Benign diseases of the female reproductive tract. In: Berek JS. Berek & Novak's Gynecology. 14th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2007:431.
- Sonohysterography. Radiological Society of North America. http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=hysterosono. Accessed March 25, 2010.
- Perez-Medina T, et al. Endometrial polyps and their implication in the pregnancy rates of patients undergoing intrauterine insemination: A prospective, randomized study. Human Reproduction. 2005;20:1632.
- Stamatellos I, et al. Pregnancy rates after hysteroscopic polypectomy depending on the size or number of the polyps. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics. 2008;277:395.
Find Mayo Clinic on