In this circumstance, an endometrial ablation can be performed. Using laser or electrical current, the endometrium, which is the lining that undergoes growth and shedding monthly, can be destroyed. As a result, monthly or irregular bleeding is reduced or eliminated completely in the majority of patients. This procedure is especially helpful in women who have gone through menopause but continue to have periods because of hormone replacement. Instead of stopping the hormones and losing the health benefits, such as protection from osteoporosis and reduction in the incidence of heart attacks, the bleeding can usually be eliminated with an endometrial ablation.
Endometrial ablation is an outpatient procedure, allowing the patient to go home the same day.
Return to work and other activities is quicker than a hysterectomy. And unlike a hysterectomy, the woman retains her uterus. This procedure, however, cannot be done in women still interested in childbearing, since the endometrium is important in supplying the pregnancy with nutrition during development. If a hysterectomy is indicated, two traditional techniques have been used for many years. Abdominal hysterectomy, in which an incision is made on the abdominal wall and the uterus, with or without the tubes and ovaries, is removed, is the most common type of procedure done.