AUB is the fourth most common symptom that leads a woman to seek gynecological advice. From a healthcare point of view, it is also associated with high direct and indirect costs. Symptoms of AUB frequently co-exist with fibroids. The relationship between them, however, is not totally understood. In many women, fibroids may be an incidental innocent bystander in the underlying causes of a menstrual bleeding complaint.1
The following definitions describe menstrual patterns associated with AUB:
You may be asked to undergo some tests to find out the definitive cause of these symptoms, which may be related to various gynecological conditions.
These tests include:
Treatment is individual to each woman, and may vary from hormonal medical management such as prescribing oral contraceptives to surgery. For every patient, the treatment must aim at restoring or improving her quality of life.2
Surgical treatment is sometimes an option depending upon severity of symptoms, lack of response to other medical management and the medical condition of the woman. This may be either a conservative (hysteroresectoscopy) or radical (hysterectomy).4
1. Clark TJ, Middleton LJ, Cooper NAM, et al. A randomised controlled trial of Outpatient versus inpatient Polyp Treatment (OPT) for abnormal uterine bleeding. Health Technology Assessment, No. 19.61. NIHR Journals Library; 2015 Jul.
2. L Whitaker et. Al. Abnormal uterine bleeding, Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology Volume 34, July 2016, Pages 54-65
3. L.Bradley Abnormal Uterine Bleeding. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=PdfExcerptURL&_imagekey=3-s2.0-B9780323032476100140-main.pdf&_piikey=B9780323032476100140&_cdi=278453&_orig=article&_zone=centerpane&_fmt=abst&_eid=3-s2.0-B9780323032476100140&_user=3730613&md5=c3305c3735583a5a8a244a3c7a88d83f&ie=/excerpt.pdf
4. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Women’s Healthcare Physicians, April 2013, Committee on Gynecologic Practice, Management of Acute Abnormal Uterine Bleeding in Nonpregnant Reproductive-Aged Women