Thermal Balloon Endometrial Ablation in Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding

INTRODUCTION: Dysfunctional uterine bleeding (DUB) affects a large number of women in the reproductive and perimenopausal age group. It significantly impairs the quality of life in otherwise healthy women. There are many different techniques for the conservative management of DUB. Medical management, LNG-IUD, hysteroscopic resection and various global ablation techniques. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We did a retrospective analysis of 156 women with dysfunctional uterine bleeding who had completed childbearing and who underwent uterine balloon ablation therapy using the Thermachoice device. Majority of the women (72%) were done using short general anesthesia while in the others sedation or local anesthesia was used. RESULTS: 49% women had amenorrhea while 41 % had oligomenorhoea or eumenorrhoea. 90% were satisfied with the procedure. There were no major complications during this study. CONCLUSIONS: Thermal balloon endometrial ablation is a simple, safe and effective technique for the permanent treatment of DUB in well selected cases.