At Viva Eve, we celebrate National Without A Scalpel Day. That’s because National Without A Scalpel Day honors our UFE procedures as well as the history and current day practitioners of non-surgical and minimally-invasive medical procedures.
Minimally-invasive treatments: A bit of medical history
On January 16, 1964, a Dr. Charles Dotter performed a minimally invasive angioplasty to open a blocked blood vessel and preserve a woman’s leg. History was made when the patient left the hospital with just a Band-Aid.
That procedure marks the first Minimally Invasive Image-guided Procedure (MIIP) ever to be performed. Numerous MIIPs have been created and improved upon since that historic procedure. There are MIIPs now to treat heart disease, uterine fibroids, and aneurysms. Importantly, these procedures resolve major health problems without many of the complications and longer recoveries that come with surgery.
National Without a Scalpel Day
The first annual National Without a Scalpel Day was established in 2015 on the anniversary of Dr. Dotter’s procedure. Instituted by the Interventional Initiative, it is intended to raise awareness about MIIPs and the difference they can make for patients.
MIIPs and UFE Fibroid Treatment
Included among the patients that MIPPs can help are women suffering from fibroids. These non-cancerous tumors, which afflict up to 80 percent of women before they reach the age of 50, can cause symptoms ranging from pelvic pain and heavy bleeding to infertility and incontinence. Fully 25 percent of women who have fibroids seek treatment for their fibroid pain.
Uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) is an MIIP that has enjoyed great success in the treatment of fibroids. UFE was first used on fibroids first in 1974 by French neuroradiologist Jean-Jacques Merland. Significantly, UFE’s total success rate percentages (with complete resolution of the symptoms of fibroids) are compelling. Studies have shown they match those of the more invasive surgeries.
The advantages of minimally invasive UFE
Uterine fibroid embolization has significant advantages over the major fibroid surgeries, hysterectomy and myomectomy. One is that the procedure requires only a small incision in the thigh or the wrist. In addition, UFE is an outpatient procedure with faster recovery times and fewer complications than surgery.
So why do more people not take advantage of UFE? The problem often comes down to a lack of knowledge about the procedure. Unfortunately, many women do not know that UFE is an option for treating their fibroids.
At Viva Eve we celebrate National Without A Scalpel Day
Patients who are informed can better consider their options and be equipped to find the treatment best for them. And fibroid patients have a minimally-invasive treatment option — UFE.
We at VIVA EVE are your partners in diagnosis, consultation and in treatment of your fibroid symptoms. We’ve got years of experience in the treatment of both uterine fibroids and adenomyosis through UFE. Our patients praise our high-quality, personalized care.
Please click here or call 1-866-684-8238 to schedule an appointment with one of our fibroid experts.
Sources for the studies mentioned in this post
- Gonsalves, C. (2008). Uterine artery embolization for treatment of symptomatic fibroids. Seminars in Interventional Radiology, 25(4): 369-377. doi: 10.1055/s-0028-1103001.
- Spies, J. (2016). Current role of uterine artery embolization in the management of uterine fibroids. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology, 59(1): 93-102. doi: 10.1097/GRF.0000000000000162.
- Memtsa, M., & Homer, H. (2012). Complications associated with uterine artery embolization for fibroids. Obstetrics and Gynecology International, 2012; 2012:290542. doi: 10.1155/2012/290542.
