ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY ENHANCES PATIENT CARE:

SUMMIT OFFERS NEW WAYS TO TREAT FIBROIDS

April 14, 2009 – Interventional radiology—a specialty now available at Summit Medical Center—offers advanced medical treatments that do not require large incisions, and offer less risk, less pain and shorter recovery times than traditional surgery.

“Interventional radiologists use their expertise in reading X-rays, ultrasound and other medical images to guide small instruments through the blood vessels or other pathways to treat disease,” said Dr. Keith Parker, a board-certified interventional radiologist on staff at Summit.  Interventional radiologists are trained in both diagnostic and therapeutic radiology and are best described as image-guided, minimally invasive surgeons.

Interventional radiologists use traditional imaging techniques to diagnose conditions, many of which can now be treated using interventional radiology. During an interventional radiology procedure, the physician makes a small incision in the skin and runs a slender tube called a catheter through the body’s network of arteries to the site of the problem. Guided by real-time imaging, they pass tiny instruments through the catheter to perform the procedure internally.
“It’s surgery in the sense that we’re manipulating something inside your body,” Dr. Parker said. “But the incisions are smaller, usually less than a quarter inch, and there’s a lot less risk. We can get you up and about the same day, as opposed to sometimes weeks of recovery time with traditional surgery.”

‘Starving’ Fibroids 

Nearly 40 percent of women aged 35 years and older have fibroids, which are non-cancerous tumors. While many fibroids produce no symptoms and usually shrink after menopause without treatment, some can cause heavy bleeding or severe pain. The traditional treatment has been a hysterectomy (removing the uterus), but uterine fibroid embolization (UFE) offers an alternative.

“UFE is a less invasive approach designed to preserve the uterus,” said Dr. Parker. “During UFE, a catheter is inserted into a blood vessel in the groin and threaded up to the uterine artery. Small particles are injected into the branches of the uterine artery, blocking the vessel and preventing blood from reaching the fibroid.” This starves the tumor of oxygen and nutrients needed for growth. Over time, the fibroid shrinks, relieving the symptoms.

“No general anesthesia is required during UFE. Patients are given medication to help them relax and for pain control,” Dr. Parker said. There is little blood loss and less pain. Recovery time is generally much faster than after a surgical procedure. The procedure gained wide publicity several years ago when U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice had the procedure.

According to Dr. Parker, 85 percent of women who have UFE experience significant or total relief from heavy bleeding, pain and other symptoms of their fibroids. The procedure is also effective for treating multiple fibroids simultaneously.

Summit Medical Center is a 188-bed regional medical center serving the residents of Davidson, Wilson and surrounding counties.  Summit offers a full range of services including emergency, medical, surgical, obstetric, oncology, psychiatric and diagnostic services.  The hospital also offers the latest advances in imaging services, including the area’s first hospital based 64-slice CT scanner. For more information, call TriStar MedLine at 615-342-1919 or 800-242-5662.