What causes uterine fibroids?

It is inevitable for women to have some gynecological diseases. Uterine fibroids is a common gynecological disease. So what causes uterine fibroids? What symptoms will appear when uterine fibroids occur? How should we prevent it in our daily life? Let's take a look at it together.

What causes uterine fibroids?

I. General elements

1. Age: Age is an important factor in the occurrence of uterine fibroids, and this situation often occurs in women who have given birth. This situation is relatively common, common in women aged 30-50, and rarely common in adolescent women with uterine fibroids. Uterine fibroids shrink or disappear after menopause.

2. Obesity: In some cases, excessive obesity can also cause uterine fibroids. This is because obesity can cause metabolic disorders, lead to insufficient regularity of estrogen regulation, cause abnormal menstrual cycles, affect ovulation, and increase the risk of uterine fibroids.

3. History of pregnancy and miscarriage: Some women who have been pregnant or have given birth before have a higher probability of developing the disease, and the age of onset is earlier, mainly because childbirth increases the estrogen level in women's bodies.

4. Smoking and drinking: Smoking and drinking are very likely to cause uterine fibroids. Studies have shown that women who smoke a pack of cigarettes a day are six times more likely to develop uterine fibroids than non-smoking women.

2. Female hormones

1. High estrogen: Microbial chemical testing confirmed that the conversion of estradiol to estrone in uterine fibroids is significantly lower than that in muscle tissue, and the concentration of estrogen receptors in uterine fibroids is significantly higher than that in nearby muscle tissue. Therefore, it is believed that the high sensitivity of uterine fibroid tissue to estrogen is one of the key factors in the occurrence of uterine fibroids.

2. High estrogen. Estrogen has the effect of promoting mitosis of uterine fibroids and stimulating the growth of uterine fibroids. If a woman's body estrogen level is high, it is very likely to cause uterine fibroids.

3. Genetic factors

Somatic cell biology shows that 25%-50% of uterine fibroids have somatic cell biological abnormalities, such as exchange of sex chromosome fragments, rearrangement of the long arm of the sex chromosome, or partial absence of the long arm. Uterine fibroids are formed by the reproduction of monoclonal smooth muscle cells, while multiple uterine fibroids are produced by different replicating somatic cells.

Symptoms of uterine fibroids

(1) Increased menstrual period

It mostly occurs in submucosal and intramural fibroids, and the main symptoms are menorrhagia, prolonged menstruation or irregular vaginal bleeding. The key reasons for increased bleeding are: the total area of ​​uterine wall expands, the endometrial hyperplasia caused by the action of estrogen, uterine fibroids hinder uterine contractions, and affect blood circulation, resulting in endometrial hematoma. Due to long-term bleeding, patients often suffer from varying degrees of anemia.

(ii) Lower abdominal mass

When subserosal or intramural uterine fibroids expand across the pelvis, most patients can feel the lump themselves and see a doctor, which may be accompanied by a feeling of falling.

3. Oppressed Diseases

Uterine fibroids located under the uterine body and cervix, if embedded in the pelvis, can compress pelvic tissue and nerves, causing lower abdominal pain and back pain. Uterine fibroids grow forward or backward and may compress the bladder, urethral orifice or duodenum, causing frequent urination, urgency, difficulty urinating, urinary retention or constipation. When uterine fibroids grow to both sides, broad ligament fibroids are formed. When the urethra is compressed, hydrourethra or renal pelvis may be caused. If the pelvic blood vessels and lymphatic vessels are compressed, it may cause edema of the lower limbs.

4. Pain

Pain is relatively rare. In addition to the pain caused by the stress on the pelvic nerves, the pedunculated cervical fibroids cause uterine contractions in the uterine cavity and cause pain. When the uterine fibroids block the cervical canal and prevent menstrual loss, it can cause dysmenorrhea. When the pedicle of a pedunculated subserosal fibroid is twisted or when the uterine fibroid undergoes red degeneration or infection during pregnancy, it can cause more severe abdominal pain.