The impact of uterine leiomyomas: a national survey of affected women.
OBJECTIVE
We sought to characterize the impact of uterine leiomyomas (fibroids) in a racially diverse sample of women in the United States.


STUDY DESIGN
A total of 968 women (573 white, 268 African American, 127 other races) aged 29-59 years with self-reported symptomatic uterine leiomyomas participated in a national survey. We assessed diagnosis, information seeking, attitudes about fertility, impact on work, and treatment preferences. Frequencies and percentages were summarized. The χ(2) test was used to compare age groups.


RESULTS
Women waited an average of 3.6 years before seeking treatment for leiomyomas, and 41% saw ≥2 health care providers for diagnosis. Almost a third of employed respondents (28%) reported missing work due to leiomyoma symptoms, and 24% believed that their symptoms prevented them from reaching their career potential. Women expressed desire for treatments that do not involve invasive surgery (79%), preserve the uterus (51%), and preserve fertility (43% of women aged <40 years).


CONCLUSION
Uterine leiomyomas cause significant morbidity. When considering treatment, women are most concerned about surgical options, especially women aged <40 years who want to preserve fertility.
['Borah|Bijan J|BJ|', 'Nicholson|Wanda K|WK|', 'Bradley|Linda|L|', 'Stewart|Elizabeth A|EA|']
D000328:Adult D001741:African Americans D001294:Attitude to Health D017281:Cost of Illness D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies D004621:Embolization, Therapeutic D004651:Employment D005260:Female D005298:Fertility D006801:Humans D007044:Hysterectomy D057226:Information Seeking Behavior D007889:Leiomyoma D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D059351:Organ Sparing Treatments D057240:Patient Preference D011788:Quality of Life D018582:Sick Leave D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires D014481:United States D014594:Uterine Neoplasms D044465:Whites
leiomyoma symptoms hysterectomy quality of life uterine fibroids