Outcome of uterine artery embolization versus MR-guided high-intensity focused ultrasound treatment for uterine fibroids: Long-term results

Image-guided Tumor Ablation: Standardization of Terminology and Reporting Criteria—A 10-Year Update

“…Tumor ablation modalities that were still being developed at the time of original preparation, such as microwave and focused ultrasound, now have multiple commercially available clinical platforms in routine clinical use (2,3). Newer ablation modalities, such as irreversible electroporation (IRE), have been introduced and clinical niches are being defined (4).…”

“…Ultrasound ablation.-There are currently two methods (2,24) for the application of ultrasound energy-extracorporeal (or transcutaneous) (25) and direct (or interstitial) for percutaneous application with a needlelike SPECIAL REPORT: Tumor Ablation: Updated Standardization of Terminology and Reporting Criteria Ahmed et al cm) electrodes are used simultaneously to approximate a larger-diameter electrode (38). Many refer to these electrodes as "an array," which may not adequately reflect the true underlying mechanism for enhanced energy deposition and ablation.…”

Safety and five-year re-intervention following magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) for uterine fibroids

“…The women who undergo MRgFUS are often a self-selecting group of women who may be highly motivated to avoid more conventional means of treating their fibroid-related symptoms. The only other study describing five-year re-intervention data had 37% of their subjects lost to follow-up and had only 36 MRgFUS subjects in their analysis [8]. In that study, the less accurate ellipsoid formula method was used to calculate the NPV and no mention of fibroid signal intensity was made.…”

Embolization of uterine fibroids from the point of view of the gynecologist: pros and cons

“…Only MRI-guided focused ultrasound seems to be targeted to fibroids in a manner similar to that of UAE, whereas the other therapies are more or less focused on bleeding. Despite the encouraging results of many trials addressing safety, low invasiveness, and the symptomatic effects of this new thermoablative therapy, retrospective comparisons show significantly greater reduction of symptom severity and improvement in total health-related quality of life scores in patients treated with UAE, resulting in a significantly lower reintervention rate when compared with patients undergoing MRI-guided focused ultrasound 53,54. However, there are no prospective randomized trials comparing MRI-guided focused ultrasound with other minimally invasive treatments for uterine myomas, such as UAE, laparoscopic hysterectomy, or myomectomy.…”