Venting -- Novasure questions

Hi ladies,

This post will be long, so I apologize for being so long-winded! This is primarly to get my thoughts out of my head and to vent.

In April of '06, I was diagnosed with high-grade cervical dysplasia and postive for hpv. I had a LEEP procedure (margins not clear) and subsequent paps/biopsies. Combined with this issue, I also have dysfunctional uterine bleeding which had been under control with a Mirena IUD for 5 years. Of course the IUD came out for the LEEP and the plan was that it would not go back in until we're sure the dysplasia is gone. During the entire year that the IUD was out, my monthly cycles were both painful and I had excessive bleeding which - at one time - drove me to the ER. I had a sonohystergram done which showed uterine polyps and that my uterus is anteverted to four weeks' size (not sure what that means). In February I had the NovaSure ablation which seems to have worked like a charm for the bleeding; EXCEPT that I now have continous cramps, bloating, and abdominal pressure/pain.

My GYN did the ablation and my GYN/ONC is treating me for the dysplasia. The ONC was not completely convinced that I should have the ablation, my GYN consulted with her and he said she gave him a tough time about it and never quite said she agreed with the procedure. BUT, the ONC told me she would not/could not see me for routine GYN issues, so she didn't counsel me on my bleeding issues. ..therefore, my GYN did the ablation.

To further compound the issues, for insurance reasons, I have had to find a new GYN/ONC who I have my first appointment with in mid-June. I am hoping he will take on my plethura of issues so I don't have to bounce back and forth between GYN and GYN/ONC.

I'm wondering if anyone has had the NovaSure procedure done and is experiencing pain/bloating/cramping since. I feel like - for the past 2 weeks - like I have my period, but with no bleeding. I also can't help but wonder if the polyps are regenerating..could that even happen??

You know, sometimes I think maybe I'm just losing my head!

Thanks for listening.

~Michelle

Hi Michelle,
I had the Novasure on March 27 and my symptoms are almost the same as yours. Upon the advice of a friend who is a past OB/GYN nurse, I keep a log.... I have cramping/pain 87% of the time since the procedure, and of course the abdominal bloating and pressure that goes along with it. All of my biopsies and ultrasounds show NOTHING, so it leaves my doctor and I completely stumped. But I know I'm in pain. My doctor has scheduled me for a hyster next Tuesday, but we are still waiting to see if the insurance will approve it (they denied it before in January.... and made me have the Ablation). I already told my doctor that if the insurance denies my surgery again, I want every abdominal scan possible so I at least know WHAT is causing all this pain. There are times it's so bad, I cramp through Demorol and a heating pad. And then, there is the issue with none of my pants fitting me because I'm so bloated all the time.... I hear you. You're not alone.

Hi Michelle,

I'm sorry you are having troubles. I doubt you're losing your head - you have been through a lot. It's hard trying to sort things out when you have multiple issues going on.

Cramps after an ablation are not uncommon during the time a woman would normally be menstruating, and may change for better or worse as time goes by, but if they are severe or troubling then you should ask your doctor about them. After my (rollerball, not Novasure) ablation, my cramps were severe and just kept getting worse. I was found to have adenomyosis <<< which was still trying to bleed every month. The cramps were from the uterus trying to expel the blood which was basically trapped behind the scarred (ablated) endometrial lining. My adenomyosis nodules were large enough to show on ultrasound so I was fortunate to know what was going on, but that is rarely the case. Did you have a polypectomy with your ablation?

I hope your new ONC/GYN can figure things out for you and help meet all your needs so you don't have to keep going between doctors. Hopefully all your records will give him a good idea of how to help you.
Hang in there.

Thinking of you & sending s,
Beth

P.S. This Endometrial Ablation Discussion Board might have some helpful information for you.

I had the NovaSure ablation last November to resolve abnormal bleeding. All went amazingly well until four months later when I started having abdominal pain that felt just like yours. I was spending the winter months south and my doctor back home didn't feel comfortable prescribing pain meds so he sent me to the local ER for evaluation. Pain meds helped get me home and the doc said about 20% of the ablations are a "failure". Mine fell in this category. He said sometimes blood builds up between the uterine wall and the scarring from the ablation. The blood has no place to go and this can cause pain. He did a laprascopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy and the pathology report showed a pocket of old blood just where he suspected it to be. I'm four weeks post op and am recovering amazingly well. Post op check up was clean and I have no restrictions. This may or may not be what happened with you but I wanted to pass along my experience so you'll know this can happen. By the way, I had several ultrasounds (abdominal and vaginal) and the results varied. Don't give up and live with pain. You aren't alone and you aren't going crazy. At times I thought everyone doubted I was really feeling pain but the pathology report vindicated me. I hope you keep at it and end up with good results.

I too had the Novasure done in February of 2006, it seemed to be alright until September of that year. Very little bleeding the months following, until September. I had severe pain in the left side and strangely radiating down the inner thigh of my left leg. I was bent over in pain. I ended up at emergency and they said I was having a "bad period". Toradol was given IV then I was sent home. After experiencing pain daily on the left side, I finally got back in to see my GYN that did the ablation, and he ordered a vaginal ultrasound, as well as a abdominal ultrasound. I too had blood build up. I was put on Lupron injection until my surgery which is booked July 13 - 2007. Lupron puts you into an early menopause. I won't get a period while on it, but you can only have it for 6 months. It is basically a temporary "fix". Hot flashes are terrible since being on this Lupron. I finally decided to take the hormone replacement...hoping this helps. The doctor is removing my one ovary that is left, due to my age ( 50 ) and he said since I am so close to a natural menopause, it is best to take it out, so that it doesn't cause problems down the road. The lupron prevents your body from producing estrogen. ( I think ) so that is why your body goes into menopause. So there you have it, my story, Kinda weird having menopausal symptoms before my hyster.
Any one else have these problems after ablation?

I had the novasure done in Sept of 06, due to hemoragic 7cm cyst, heavy and painful periods also have fibroids. The procedure never took, after the "recovery" or I call it "repair" time, my periods came back full force. Yes, I get the bloating, alot of gas and over the past 6 months or longer its just gotten alot worse. I also have the sharp pain on the left side, had that before the ablation too, now I've been getting it on the right side also. I freaked DH out the other night when I doubled over from the sharp pain I got in the right side. Pretty much in pain everyday its manageble with Ibuprofin(takes a little bit of the edge off) Too scared to get prescription drugs for pain, narcotic based pain meds give me severe headaches, sorry to ramble. I guess I'm just dissapointed that the ablation didn't work and now I'm getting the LAH on July 3rd. Take care, and your not crazy, I feel the same pain I'm hoping the pathology results will show it wasn't in my head

Ok ladies this wierd...I had the Novasure ablation done about a year ago...throughout the past year I started experiencing extreme lower back pain and horrible cramping that came with my cycles and then started to stick around on a daily basis...All of the symptoms that you ladies are describing here...I was taking Ibprofen and Vicoden daily to try to get the pain under control...and that did not help...I just had a hysterectomy done 3 days ago and he found holes in my uterus that were bleeding...There was also blood trapped in the myometrium layer (from the endometrium layer being scarred down)...Obviously this was causing all my pain...The question is..where did the holes come from?? I'm guessing my uterus was punctured during the ablation and I was bleeding through the holes the entire time!! Be careful!! The only thing that showed on my ultrasound was "abnormal" areas on the uterus...My doc suspected it was adeno...Now I'm concerned b/c if the uterus was punctured during the ablation and the procedure was not stopped, there can be other organs that were damaged in the process...Listen to your bodies ladies...I believe I would have never had to have a hysterectomy at 28 if I didn't have the ablation done...Good luck!!

Michelle,
My understanding of ablations is that they should never be done in the prescence of cancer because it may make it impossible to see the cancer in future scans. Your oncologist is right to be mad at the doc who did it. Now instead of treatment that could be minimally invasive, you may end up needing a hyst to figure out what the heck the problem is. I'm angry because a similar thing happened to me, but instead I had adeno which is another conditon that one shouldn't have an ablation for. I also bloated and swelled way up following the ablation. For the first 2 months after my ablation I was miserable. I went to the docs so many times. Finally she ran tests and found I had a DOUBLE INFECTION! I couldn't even wash the dishes in my sink or have my daugther on my lap from the pain of pressing on my abdomen. So I was given a strong antibiotic which cleared it up. One month of bliss and then then next month started blowing up again. Was told by both of my doctors that "it was all in my head" and given antidepressants. Finally switched to another gyn and another GP. This gyn listened and sent me to a gyn/onc to do the LSH. Gyn/ONC found loads and loads of new fibroids during the hyst that couldn't be seen on the sono following the ablation. Apparently every time my period was due they were doing their own little thing in my uterus and growing bigger and more multiple each month. It was hard to pick up my shampoo to use it in the morning and forget my yoga class. I felt like I was doing yoga with a ton of bricks in me. Now my ute is out and I feel so much better. I actually lost 10 pounds the first week out from the hyst from all that junk in there. Sorry this is so long, but I just wanted to let you know it IS DEFINITELY NOT IN YOUR HEAD you are really feeling what you do. Don't ignore it. I'm sure your onc. will know the way to go.
Hugs to you,
Tara

Michelle,

I'm so sorry you are having so much trouble. I had also heard that you should never have the ablation done if there is a chance of cancer becuase it makes it difficult to detect.

I can tell you my experience with the Novasure ablation. I had polluyps and heavy, painful periods. My dr. said a D & C and ablation would take care of it like a charm. She said there was never any complications from an ablation. Well, I had my done, they checked for cancer and found none so she did the ablation. I was fine until the next day I started to run a high fever. That was just the beginning. To make a long story short, 5 months of horrible pain and low-grade fevers and living off of vicodin and Ibuprofen finally landed me with a new dr. and a TVH. He found that first, the ablation had not been done right, and my first dr. had left living tissue and a bunch of junk trapped inside my uterus. It couldn't bleed out from the scarring from the ablation, so it started to bleed back into my tubes and pelvis. The blood ate holes in my pelvic membranes, and caused an acute case of endo. After the hyster, my new dr. also found that the ablation had aggravated a bunch of fibroids hiding in the lining of my uterus. I also had PID from the original kidney infection and peritonitis.

Just like you, I thought I was loosing my mind, especially when I had a few doctors tell me it was in my head. I would totally reccommend you get a second or third opinion until someone can give you some answers. I hope that you get some relief soon, and know that you are not alone!

Thank you for your replies and just for your validation that I'm not necessarily losing my head !!

The more I am reading, the more I am realizing that perhaps I shouldn't have had the ablation. ...but what's done is done.

I see my new gyn/onc in a couple weeks, so we'll see where that goes.

Thank you, ladies.

~Michelle