Questions To Ask Before Fibroid Surgery

The exact technique that your surgeon is going to use is important because different techniques have different outcomes. How long your recovery will take, whether or not you’ll be able to get pregnant afterwards, and post-operative scarring are just a few of the outcomes that vary depending on the approach used by your surgeon.

Fibroid removal surgery could mean the complete removal of the uterus. This approach is called a hysterectomy. Fibroid removal surgery could also mean the targeted removal of the fibroids while leaving the uterus intact. This approach is called a myomectomy. Hysterectomies and myomectomies can be done through one large incision across the abdomen, through multiple small incisions laparoscopically, or entirely through the vagina. Even within these very different techniques, there’s a great deal of variation in how your surgery can go, so it’s critical to understand exactly what procedure you’re getting.

Post-operative scars are a very real concern for many women undergoing fibroid surgery. Depending on the surgical technique used, women may end up with no scars (vaginal approach), multiple small scars (laparoscopic approach), or one large scar (abdominal approach). Scars can be permanent, so it’s important to be comfortable with the incisions you’ll get before you decide that fibroid surgery is right for you.

Like other outcomes, fibroid surgery recovery time varies by technique. Most women that undergo fibroid removal surgery can expect a minimum recovery period of about 2 weeks before they’re able to fully resume normal strenuous activities like work and exercise. But a full recovery for some can take as long as 6 weeks. It’s important to get a more specific estimate from your surgeon, as you’ll likely want to plan your busy life around your recovery and understand when everything will get back to normal.

Some women are surprised to learn that fibroids can ‘come back’ after myomectomy. Fibroids that are incompletely excised can regrow, or brand new fibroids can develop into sizes that cause symptoms to return. In medicine, this phenomenon is often called ‘recurrence.’ With hysterectomy, however, recurrence is not possible because the entire uterus is removed, so you’ll be fibroid free for the rest of your life.

Even with the information provided here, we still recommend that you have an in-depth consultation with your doctor around these questions. We can’t overstate how important it is that you have weighed all of your options and have all of the facts before you get fibroid surgery. Get in touch with us at ProFibroidMD if you’d like to learn more about fibroid surgery and non-surgical options for fibroids.