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- Memory
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- Movement Disorders
- Multiple Sclerosis
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- Polio and Post-Polio Syndrome
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- Diabetes and Pregnancy
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- Primary Ovarian Insufficiency
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- Cholesterol Levels: What You Need to Know
- Cholesterol Medicines
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- How to Lower Cholesterol
- How to Lower Cholesterol with Diet
- Infant and Newborn Nutrition
- LDL: The “Bad” Cholesterol
- Malabsorption Syndromes
- Nutrition for Older Adults
- Pregnancy and Nutrition
- Toddler Nutrition
- Triglycerides
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- Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency
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- Indigestion
- Itching
- Jaundice
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- Pain
- Rare Diseases
- Raynaud’s Disease
- Sciatica
- Speech and Communication Disorders
- Stuttering
Uterine Fibroids
Summary
Uterine fibroids are the most common benign tumors in women of childbearing age. Fibroids are made of muscle cells and other tissues that grow in and around the wall of the uterus, or womb. The cause of fibroids is unknown. Risk factors include being African American or being overweight.
Many women with fibroids have no symptoms. If you do have symptoms, they may include:
- Heavy or painful periods or bleeding between periods
- Feeling “full” in the lower abdomen
- Urinating often
- Pain during sex
- Lower back pain
- Reproductive problems, such as infertility, multiple miscarriages or early labor
Your health care provider may find fibroids during a gynecological exam or by using imaging tests. Treatment includes drugs that can slow or stop their growth, or surgery. If you have no symptoms, you may not even need treatment. Many women with fibroids can get pregnant naturally. For those who cannot, infertility treatments may help.
NIH: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Start Here
- About Uterine Fibroids Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Uterine Fibroids American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
- Uterine Fibroids Fact Sheet Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Leiomyoma National Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Uterine Myomectomy National Institutes of Health
Find an Expert
- Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Find an Interventional Radiologist Society of Interventional Radiology
- Find an Ob-Gyn American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
Genetics
- Hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell cancer: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
Diagnosis and Tests
- How Are Uterine Fibroids Diagnosed? Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Hysteroscopy National Library of Medicine
- Laparoscopy National Library of Medicine
- Pelvis Ultrasound Radiological Society of North America
- Pneumothorax – series — Normal Medical Encyclopedia
Treatments and Therapies
- Hysterectomy Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Medication-Related Treatments for Fibroids Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
- Myomectomy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
- Uterine Fibroid Treatment Radiological Society of North America
Patient Handouts
- Hysteroscopy Medical Encyclopedia
- Living with uterine fibroids Medical Encyclopedia
- Uterine artery embolization Medical Encyclopedia
- Uterine artery embolization – discharge Medical Encyclopedia
- Uterine fibroids Medical Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia
- Pelvic laparoscopy Medical Encyclopedia
- Pelvic ultrasound – abdominal Medical Encyclopedia
- Transvaginal ultrasound Medical Encyclopedia
Related Issues
- Period Problems: Fibroids, Endometriosis, and Other Issues National Institutes of Health
Journal Articles
Symptoms
- What Are the Symptoms of Uterine Fibroids? Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development