Dr. John Studd
clinical gynaecologist

print this pageHysterectomy

Glossary

Abdominal hysterectomy Removal of the uterus through a small abdominal incision.
Abdominal hysterectomy and Bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy Removal of the uterus and ovaries - which should usually be followed by hormone replacement therapy.
Dysmenorrhoea Painful periods, although the pain may precede the onset of bleeding by several days
Endometrial ablation Removal of the lining of the womb by laser or cautery.
Fibroids A benign tumour or tumours in the uterus which may not produce symptoms. But it may cause a large uterus which feels heavy in the pelvis or if it encroaches into the uterine cavity, can cause any bleeding.
Fibroid embolisation The technique where catheters are inserted through the arteries of the groin into the uterine artery and the blood supply of the uterus cut.
Hormone Replacement Therapy Correction of the missing hormones by oestrogen tablets, gel, patches or implants. In women who have lost their ovaries it is usually advisable to add testosterone which is given by an implant every six months at the same time as oestrogen.
Menorrhagia Heavy, often erratic periods.
Mirena coil An Intra-uterine device, like that used for birth control which contains progestogen and decreases or stops menstrual loss.
Myomectomy Removal of fibroids from the uterus usually by an abdominal approach leaving the uterus.
Oestrogen Female hormone produced by the ovaries and also the adrenal glands and also body fat.
Premenstrual Syndrome A common complaint of emotional and physical Symptoms lasting for 1 or 14 days before every period. Can be a great problem and difficult to treat.
Progestogens Synthetic hormones which are used to stop growth of the lining of the womb and hence cut down on the amount of blood loss.
Sub-total Hysterectomy Hysterectomy leaving the cervix behind.
Testosterone The sex hormone that is present in women at levels even higher than oestrogen! Thus it is not a "male hormone", although men (hopefully) have higher circulatory levels of testosterone than women.
Vaginal hysterectomy Removal of the uterus through the vaginal route so that there is no abdominal scar.

^top

void