Endometrial ablation is actually a concept that s been in use for almost twenty years now. Through a small instrument that s placed directly in the uterus using a variety of energy sources, the lining of the uterus can be destroyed which effectively decreases or totally stops menstrual bleeding. It s primarily used for patients who have heavy flows and who are in the reproductive age. It can be used in older patients but it was initially designed for women with heavy menses. If all this didn t work, an hysterectomy was the only solution and the logical consequence.
Endometrial ablation is a new method for treating heavy bleeding in younger patients.
It is my understanding that there are different methods, maybe we should go a little bit deeper into the different possibilities of removing the inner layer of the uterus - the endometrium. That is the part of the endometrium from which each month the major portion of the lining of the uterus grows. Endometrial ablation, on the other hand, does destroy the basalis and, therefore, the tissue where the lining of the uterus develops. The initial technique used a YAG laser and very good results were achieved with this technique. For years we ve had available to us the resectoscope, and once it was demonstrated that endometrial ablation could be accomplished using the YAG laser, many physicians began using electrical energy with the resectoscope.