CIGC patient Michelle had been struggling with rectal bleeding with her cycle before coming to see us. Her symptoms were getting progressively worse for nearly 3 years. She saw a general practitioner, a gastroenterologist and an OB/GYN and none of them was able to recognize the signs of endometriosis. They dismissed her symptoms and could not provide treatment. Michelle was in great pain, feeling hopeless and desperate.
2015 has been a remarkable year for The Center for Innovative GYN Care. Many of our patients have shared their experience dealing with complex GYN conditions and finding relief after minimally invasive GYN surgery. As we look back, we are amazed by how many lives have changed for the better and we are so grateful for their continued support in helping others find us. Thank you to all of our patients!
At a routine checkup, Heidi was given the diagnosis of potentially cancerous fibroids. She was frightened as she was recommended a complete hysterectomy with robotic surgery, using power morcellation. Heidi decided to seek a second opinion and could not believe she found something so drastically better at CIGC. Read Heidi’s story.
For several years, Ljubica and her husband had tried fertility treatments unsuccessfully and after 3 failed attempts, they were starting to get discouraged. It turned out she required surgery to remove a fibroid and uterine polyp before beginning IVF. Ljubica had a LAAM procedure for her fibroid and a subsequent polyp removal. She got pregnant naturally shortly after the procedure. Read Ljubica’s story
Rashetta found out she had fibroids in college. For years, she saw the same doctor who advised to wait and watch, only her pain got progressively worse. The fibroids continued to grow and she actually had a date scheduled to have a hysterectomy, which she cancelled. Rashetta met with Dr. Paul MacKoul and ended up getting the LAAM procedure. Read more of Rashetta’s story in this Blog and in The Baltimore Times
Back in 2011, Gwen had a fibroid the size of an orange, causing her pelvic pain that she had struggled with for years. She had minimally invasive fibroid surgery 4 years ago and feels great speaking about it now. She says she can’t even see where her incisions were and you would never know she had fibroid surgery. Read Gwen’s story.
TRAVEL PATIENTS
Patients travel from all around the country for CIGC’s advanced minimally invasive procedures. So many women have complex GYN conditions that require a specialist, but very few can perform minimally invasive surgery. Read some of our travel patient stories from women who have traveled for surgery with Paul MacKoul MD and Natalya Danilyants MD:
Get to know us better on InnovativeGYN.com where you can learn about CIGC’s groundbreaking minimally invasive techniques. When you are ready to schedule your appointment and go over your options with an advanced surgical specialist, call 888-SURGERY or contact us online. For more patient feedback, visit online doctor review sites: Dr. Paul MacKoul Reviews| Dr. Natalya Danilyants Reviews.
Endometriosis is a complex, often misunderstood GYN condition. The number of medical professionals who are experienced at diagnosing and skilled at effectively removing endometriosis are limited and the need for research, awareness and better medical training is great. Many leaders in women’s reproductive health still fall short when it comes to championing the advancement of endometriosis research, medical training and awareness. However, one group is directing a great deal of energy to ensuring that endometriosis gets the attention is deserves. The Endometriosis Foundation of America efforts are multi-faceted.
EFA founders Dr. Tamer Seckin and Padma Lakshmi have taken the cause to heart. Dr. Seckin travels across the United States and abroad giving lectures, and teaching the art and science of endometriosis surgery. Ms. Lakshmi speaks publicly about her experience through an array of channels including mass media, political arenas, and public events, allowing her to reach a wide audience.
CIGC is working closely with endometriosis awareness organizations to ensure that our patients have access to the support they need, and have the most up-to-date information about the most effective minimally invasive endometriosis removal to manage pain, bleeding and infertility.
Advancements in minimally invasive GYN surgery have led to a significant increase in outpatient procedures. A lot of these procedures are performed in ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs), providing high quality outpatient surgical and preventive care at a much lower cost. A growing trend over the last decade has been the decline in inpatient hospital stays, which carry more risks & costs and offer no benefit to the patient over outpatient procedures.
Recovering from minimally invasive GYN surgery in the comfort of your home means reducing the risks of infection as well as the overall cost of surgery. Learn more about the benefits of minimally invasive GYN surgery in outpatient settings in this recent Tumblr blog: Paul MacKoul MD Explains the Benefits of Outpatient GYN Surgery
When you are ready to go over your options, call 888-SURGERY or contact us online to book a consult. If you are an out-of-town patient, visit our travel program page.
If you have suffered from pelvic pain for an extended period of time without knowing the cause, a diagnostic laparoscopy might be indicated. Women who are misdiagnosed can go through several rounds of wrong treatment, costing them time, money and possibly even worse consequences on their overall health.
If a patient has endometriosis, which is the most common cause of chronic pelvic pain, diagnostic tools like ultrasound, CT or MRI may not be able to detect the nature or severity of the condition. A diagnostic laparoscopy allows for a small thin camera to be inserted into the abdomen where the entire pelvis can be inspected and suspicious lesions can be resected for a diagnosis.
MANAGEMENT OF ENDOMETRIOSIS
Endometriosis is a unique GYN condition, hard to manage medically. Management of pain from endometriosis can be done with the help of with analgesics and hormonal suppression, which is used to treat symptoms. This however does nothing to improve fertility, treat adhesions, or resolve endometriomas.
GYN surgery is the most definitive treatment for endometriosis. The diagnostic laparoscopy will be able to determine how far the condition has spread. Surgical management can be done through endometriosis resection (also known as endometriosis excision) to improve symptoms or hysterectomy for the best long-term pain control.
Depending on the severity of the condition and the patient’s desire to preserve fertility, hysterectomy does not have to be the only option. Endometriosis removal is conservative surgery, focusing on removing endometriosis and improving symptoms, while preserving the uterus, tubes and ovaries as much as possible. This approach improves pain, but it does not cure endometriosis.
Hysterectomy with or without removal of the ovaries is for women who do not desire fertility or for women for whom conservative surgery has failed. Performing a hysterectomy will remove the uterus, and can often prevent endometriosis from returning. However, if the endometriosis has spread beyond the immediate pelvic area, or if endometriotic lesions or endometriomas are missed, there is a chance that it will continue to spread.
Endometriosis is a painful and complicated GYN condition. Getting diagnosed early is important and for patients who are found NOT to have endometriosis, the diagnostic laparoscopy may help avoid a long course of medical therapy directed toward the wrong diagnosis.
When dealing with endometriosis, surgical management by fellowship trained minimally invasive GYN surgeons is important to ensure a complete procedure with a full recovery. CIGC endometriosis specialists Dr. Paul MacKoul, MD or Dr. Natalya Danilyants, MD have performed over 20,000 GYN procedures, with remarkable results.
