Preliminary Observation of Transcatheter Uterine Artery Embolization for Adenomyosis

Objective To investigate the efficiency of transcatheter uterine artery embolization (TUAE) for the treatment of adenomyosis. Materials and Methods Twenty five female patients with adenomyosis underwent TUAE. All patients were affected by secondary menstrual pain, 21 cases had menorrhagia and 12 cases had anemia. Of 25 patients, 10 had diffuse, while 15 had focal adenomyosis. Hysteromyoma were accompanied in 4 cases. Bilateral uterine arterial embolization with Lipiodol pingyangmycin emulsion and Gelfoam particles was carried out in all patients. Lipiodol of 6～10 ml (mean 8 ml) and pingyangmycin of 8 mg were used. The Gelfoam particle size was 6.0 cm×3.0 cm×0.3 cm.Results Improvement of menstrual pain was obtained in 96.0% patients (completely disappeared in 80%), and improvement of menorrhagia in 100% (returning to normal in 76.2%). In 12 patients with anemia, the hemoglobin concentration was significantly increased or restored to normal in 3～6 months after the surgery. Ultrasonic reexamination 6 months after TUAE showed that the uterine volume was decreased by a mean of 44.1% and the volume of 21 localized lesions was decreased by a mean of 58.2%. No serious complications occurred in all cases.Conclusion TUAE shows good short term effect in the treatment of adenomyosis although further observation is needed to determine its long term effectiveness.