High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) for the treatment of uterine fibroids: does HIFU significantly increase the risk of pelvic adhesions?

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⚙ AI-generated summary by gemini-2.5-flash-lite, 2026-07-09 ⓘ

This retrospective study assessed pelvic adhesions in patients with uterine fibroids and found that high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment did not significantly increase their risk.

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of pelvic adhesions in patients with uterine fibroids after high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment, then analyze the influencing factors of pelvic adhesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From October 2010 to March 2020, a total of 2619 patients with uterine fibroids underwent either hysterectomy, myomectomy, or cesarean section in Suining Central Hospital of Sichuan province. Of the 2619 patients, 810 were excluded because of a documented history of either pelvic infections, endometriosis, prior abdominopelvic surgery, or gynecological malignancies; 1809 patients were enrolled and the data were retrospectively assessed for the prevalence and patterns of pelvic adhesions. Among them, 96 patients with uterine fibroids had had prior HIFU treatment (HIFU group), 1713 patients had not had HIFU or surgical treatments (control group). RESULTS: Among the 96 patients in the HIFU group, adhesions were detected in 42 patients, the incidence of pelvic adhesion being 43.75%; the 1713 patients in the control group, adhesions were detected in 619 patients, the prevalence of pelvic adhesion being 36.14%. No statistically significant difference in the incidence of adhesion between the two groups was observed (p = .132), no significant difference in location of pelvic adhesions between the two groups and no significant difference in the severity of adhesions between the two groups was observed (p > .05). CONCLUSIONS: Based on our results with limited numbers, we concluded that HIFU treatment did not significantly increase the risk of pelvic adhesions.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Ablation High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Ablation High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Ablation Leiomyoma Leiomyoma Leiomyoma Uterine Neoplasms Uterine Neoplasms Uterine Neoplasms Cesarean Section Cesarean Section Female Female Humans Humans Pregnancy Pregnancy Retrospective Studies Retrospective Studies Treatment Outcome

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Cites (3)

References (17)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-10-14T06:08:39.101224+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-04T00:00:01.174412+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-10-08T21:28:22.610273+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK