Modern management of menorrhagia

"Evaluation of the effect of roasted lentil flour (lentil savigh) as a functional food in menstrual bleeding reduction"

BACKGROUND

Menorrhagia is a regular menstrual cycle lasting more than seven days and/or blood loss over 80 mL per cycle. One of the herbs recommended in Iranian traditional medicine for menorrhagia treatment is lentil savigh, which is the flour made from roasted lentil (Lens culinaris medic).

METHODS

The current randomized clinical trial was conducted on 54 patients within the age range of 18 to 50 years randomly divided into two groups. The treatment group took three 10-gram lentil savigh sachets in the morning. The control group was treated with 500 mg tranexamic acid capsule every eight hours, both from the first day of menstruation for seven days. Patient's bleeding was evaluated by the pictorial blood loss assessment chart (PBAC), before and in each of the three treatment cycles. Quality of life was evaluated by the menorrhagia questionnaire (MQ) at the beginning and the end of the study for each patient.

RESULTS

The mean (SD) of PBAC scores significantly decreased before and after three cycles from 383.5(163) to 222.1(128.6) in the lentil savigh group (P < 0.0001), and from 333.8(141.3) to 239.1(132.6) in the tranexamic acid group (P < 0.0001). There was no significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.6). Quality of life significantly improved in the lentil savigh group from 61.5(12.3) to 34.4(14.6) in comparison with that of the tranexamic acid group changing from 56.3(11.1) to 46.8(12.7) (P < 0.004).

CONCLUSION

Both products were effective in menstrual bleeding reduction, but lentil savigh improved the quality of life more effectively. Therefore, lentil savigh, as a functional food, could be introduced as a good initial choice for menorrhagia treatment.

Iron Deficiency Anemia in Adolescents Who Present with Heavy Menstrual Bleeding

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To assess the clinical severity and initial treatment of iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in female adolescents with heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) in our center.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study of electronic medical records via search of administrative records using International Classification of Diseases Ninth Revision codes for IDA or unspecified anemia and disorders of menstruation.

SETTING

Children's Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.

PARTICIPANTS

One hundred seven patients with HMB and concomitant IDA (median age, 14.4 years) who presented to the outpatient, emergency department, and/or inpatient settings.

RESULTS

The median initial hemoglobin concentration for all patients (n = 107) was 7.4 g/dL, and most (74%, n = 79) presented to the emergency department or via inpatient transfer. Symptomatic IDA was treated with blood transfusion in 46 (43%, n = 46). Ferrous sulfate was the most commonly prescribed oral iron therapy. Seven patients received intravenous iron therapy either initially or after oral iron treatment failure. Combined oral contraceptives were commonly prescribed for abnormal uterine bleeding, yet 10% of patients (n = 11) received no hormonal therapy during their initial management. Evaluation for underlying bleeding disorders was inconsistent.

CONCLUSION

Severe anemia because of IDA and HMB resulting in urgent medical care, including hospitalization and blood transfusion, is a common but underemphasized problem in adolescent girls. In addition to prevention and early diagnosis, meaningful efforts to improve initial management of adolescents with severe HMB and IDA are necessary.

Menorrhagia Management in Iranian Traditional Medicine

Menorrhagia is a common problem. Medical management for menorrhagia includes hormonal and nonhormonal treatments. These treatments have different side effects, which reduce quality of life. Complementary and traditional medicines have been used to handle menorrhagia for centuries in many cultures. There is a lot of information and data in Iranian traditional documents or books about medicinal herbs that are used by Iranian traditional medicine scientists for the treatment of menorrhagia. The aim of this study was to review the approaches to menorrhagia in Iranian traditional medicine texts. In this study, some main Iranian traditional medicine manuscripts including Canon of Medicine and Al-Havi of Rhazes were studied to extract important information about menorrhagia management. Iranian traditional medicine physicians have relied on an organized system of etiological theories and treatments for menorrhagia. Their methods for menorrhagia management may be able to convince the desire of many women to preserve their uterus and avoid hormonal therapy.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for heavy menstrual bleeding

BACKGROUND

Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) is an important cause of ill health in premenopausal women. Although surgery is often used as a treatment, a range of medical therapies are also available. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) reduce prostaglandin levels, which are elevated in women with excessive menstrual bleeding and also may have a beneficial effect on dysmenorrhoea.

OBJECTIVES

The primary objective of this review was to investigate the effectiveness of NSAIDs in achieving a reduction in menstrual blood loss in women of reproductive years with HMB.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders & Subfertility Group trials register, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CINAHL in July 2012 and reference lists of articles. We also contacted manufacturers and researchers in the field.

SELECTION CRITERIA

The inclusion criteria were randomised comparisons of individual NSAIDs or combined with other medical therapy with either each other, placebo or other medical treatments in women with regular heavy periods measured either objectively or subjectively and with no pathological or iatrogenic (treatment-induced) causes for their heavy menstrual blood loss.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Eighteen RCTs were identified that fulfilled the inclusion criteria for this review and data were extracted independently. Odds ratios for dichotomous outcomes and weighted mean differences for continuous outcomes were estimated from the data of nine trials. The results of the remaining seven cross-over trials with data unsuitable for pooling, one trial with skewed data and one trial with missing variances were described in data tables.

MAIN RESULTS

As a group, NSAIDs were more effective than placebo at reducing HMB but less effective than either tranexamic acid, danazol or the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG IUS). Treatment with danazol caused a shorter duration of menstruation and more adverse events than NSAIDs but this did not appear to affect the acceptability of treatment. There were no statistically significant differences between NSAIDs and the other treatments (oral luteal progestogen, ethamsylate, an older progesterone-releasing intrauterine system (Progestasert), oral contraceptive pill (OCC)) but most studies were underpowered. There was no evidence of a difference between the individual NSAIDs (naproxen and mefenamic acid) in reducing HMB.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

NSAIDs reduce HMB when compared with placebo but are less effective than tranexamic acid, danazol or LNG IUS. However, adverse events are more severe with danazol therapy. In the limited number of small studies suitable for evaluation, no significant difference in efficacy was demonstrated between NSAIDs and other medical treatments such as oral luteal progestogen, ethamsylate, OCC or another type of intrauterine system, Progestasert.

When is high-dose intravenous iron repletion needed? Assessing new treatment options

High doses of intravenous iron have a role in the treatment of a number of clinical situations associated with iron deficiency, iron deficiency anemia, and blood loss. In the presence of functioning erythropoiesis, iron supplementation alone may be adequate to replenish iron stores and restore blood loss. Where hormone replacement with an erythropoiesis-stimulating agent is required, iron adequacy will optimize treatment. Intravenous iron offers a rapid means of iron repletion and is superior to oral iron in many circumstances, especially in the presence of anemia of chronic disease, where it appears to overcome the block to absorption of iron from the gastrointestinal tract and immobilization of stored iron. The clinical situations where high doses of iron are commonly required are reviewed. These include nondialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease, inflammatory bowel disease, obstetrics, menorrhagia, and anemia associated with cancer and its treatment. The literature indicates that high doses of iron are required, with levels of 1500 mg in nondialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease and up to 3600 mg in inflammatory bowel disease. New formulations of intravenous iron have recently been introduced that allow clinicians to administer high doses of iron in a single administration. Ferumoxytol is available in the US, has a maximum dose of 510 mg iron in a single administration, but is limited to use in chronic kidney disease. Ferric carboxymaltose can be rapidly administered in doses of 15 mg/kg body weight, up to a ceiling dose of 1000 mg. A test dose is not required, and it can be used more widely across a spectrum of iron deficiency and iron deficiency anemia indications. The latest introduction is iron isomaltoside 1000. Again, a test dose is not required, and it can be delivered rapidly as an infusion (in an hour), allowing even higher doses of iron to be administered in a single infusion, ie, 20 mg/kg body weight with no ceiling. This will allow clinicians to achieve high-dose repletion more frequently as a single administration. Treatment options for iron repletion have taken a major leap forward in the past two years, especially to meet the demand for high doses given as a single administration.

Therapeutic amenorrhea in patients at risk for thrombocytopenia

To examine the need for and evaluate the method of menses suppression in women at risk for thrombocytopenia. A systematic review of the published literature in MEDLINE using the search terms thrombocytopenia, menorrhagia, therapeutic amenorrhea, progestin intrauterine device, combination oral contraceptive--extended and cyclic, gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist, danazol, and progestins. There are an increased number of reproductive age women at risk for thrombocytopenia who would benefit from menses suppression. A number of effective medical regimens are available. In patients who fail medical therapy, endometrial ablation appears to be effective in women with thrombocytopenia. As a result of the increased number of women at risk for thrombocytopenia, there is a need for therapeutic amenorrhea. The type of regimen selected depends upon the patients need for contraception and the ability to tolerate estrogen-containing medications. For women who fail medical therapy, there are surgical options, which are associated with less morbidity than hysterectomy.

Effectiveness of a Computerized Decision Aid in Primary Care on Decision Making and Quality of Life in Menorrhagia: Results of the MENTIP Randomized Controlled Trial

Background. Computerized decision aids have the potential to increase patient involvement in the decision-making process. However, most published evidence concerning the effectiveness of decision aids is from secondary care. Aim. To evaluate whether the addition of a computerized decision aid to written information improves decision making in women consulting their general practitioner with menorrhagia comparedwithwritten informationalone. Design of study. Randomized controlled trial. Setting. Nineteen general practices in the North of England. Method. One hundred forty-nine women presenting with menorrhagia were randomized to receive written information and access to a computerized decision aid or written information alone. Outcomes were assessed using postal questionnaires. These were scores on the Decisional Conflict Scale and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory anxiety scale at 2 weeks and the Menorrhagia Specific Utility quality-of-life scale, knowledge about menorrhagia, and anxiety and process measures at 6 months. Results. Two weeks after the intervention, there was significantly less decisional conflict in the intervention group (adjusted difference = −16.6; 95% confidence interval [CI] = −21.5 to −11.7; P < 0.001). At 6 months, the intervention group showed better knowledge about menorrhagia (adjusted difference = 9.3 ; 95% CI = 1.9 to 16.6; P = 0.014) and menorrhagia quality of life (adjusted difference = 10.9; 95% CI = 0.9 to 21.0; P = 0.033). There was no difference in anxiety scores at either 2 weeks or 6 months. Conclusions. A computerized decision aid, used outside of the primary care consultation, is effective in increasing patient involvement in decision making in primary care.

A systematic review evaluating health-related quality of life, work impairment, and health-care costs and utilization in abnormal uterine bleeding

OBJECTIVES

Abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) impacts women's health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and puts a heavy economic burden on society. To date, this burden has not been systematically studied. We conducted a systematic review of the medical literature to evaluate the impact of AUB on HRQoL and to quantify the economic burden of AUB from a societal perspective.

METHODS

We searched the PubMed and Cochrane databases, and article bibliographies for the period up to July 2005. Teams of two reviewers independently abstracted data from studies that reported outcomes of interest: prevalence, HRQoL, work impairment, and health-care utilization and costs associated with AUB.

RESULTS

The search yielded 1009 English-language articles. Ninety-eight studies (including randomized controlled trials, observational studies, and reviews) that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria underwent a full-text review. The prevalence of AUB among women of reproductive age ranged from 10% to 30%. The HRQoL scores from the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36) suggested that women with AUB have HRQoL below the 25th percentile of that for the general female population within a similar age range. The conservatively estimated annual direct and indirect economic costs of AUB were approximately $1 billion and $12 billion, respectively. These figures do not account for intangible costs and productivity loss due to presenteeism.

CONCLUSIONS

The burden of AUB needs further and more thorough investigation. Additional research should prospectively evaluate the impact of AUB and the value of treatment provided to help guide future health resource allocation and clinical decision-making.

Menstrual-cycle-related symptoms: a review of the rationale for continuous use of oral contraceptives

As many as 80% of reproductive-aged women experience physical changes associated with menstruation, and 20% to 40% experience menstrual-cycle-related symptoms. Decades of research in women with menstrual disorders, such as dysmenorrhea and menorrhagia, have shown that continuous use of oral contraceptives (OCs), without the hormone-free interval, is a safe and effective method to relieve these symptoms and ultimately induce amenorrhea in many women. If given the opportunity, a majority of women would opt for extended-cycle or continuous regimens, and numerous clinical trials have shown that continuous OC regimens induce amenorrhea in 80% to 100% of women by 10 to 12 months of use. For women who do not wish to become pregnant, a continuous OC regimen should be an available option.

Cost-effectiveness of treatments for dysfunctional uterine bleeding in women who need contraception

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to compare the cost-effectiveness of oral contraceptives (OCs), the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) and surgical management in treating dysfunctional uterine bleeding (DUB) in women not desiring additional children.

METHOD

A Markov model was constructed from the perspective of the health services payers for a 5-year period. Treatment costs, DUB treatment success rates and contraception success rates were obtained through a literature review.

RESULTS

In women not responding to an initial trial of OCs, surgical management was more effective than the LNG-IUS (95.5% vs. 92%) but at higher cost (US$4853 vs. US$2796 per woman). Among responders to OCs, continuing treatment with the LNG-IUS instead of OCs was more effective (92% vs. 90.4%) and less expensive (US$2796 vs. US$4711). For women naïve to medical therapy, the LNG-IUS and OCs had similar effectiveness, but cost for the LNG-IUS was lower (US$2796 vs. US$4895). In all scenarios, surgery followed if medical therapy failed; rates of primary method failure were 62.5% with OCs and 34% with the LNG-IUS at 12 months.

CONCLUSIONS

Treatment strategies employing the LNG-IUS are the most cost-effective in managing DUB, regardless of whether a woman has previously tried OC therapy.

Menorrhagia, mechanisms and targeted therapies

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Efficient treatment options for the increasing complaint of heavy menstrual bleeding are required to avoid the morbidity associated with major surgery. This review summarizes recent developments in the nonsurgical approach to treating menorrhagia.

RECENT FINDINGS

Even though the mechanism of menstruation has still not been fully elucidated, there have been promising developments in the attempt to reduce menstrual blood loss. The levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system has proven very efficient, and there is a frameless device suitable for enlarged uterine cavities. The side effect of breakthrough bleeding has been the main reason for discontinuing treatment. Recent studies have investigated options of concomitant therapy with antiprogestogens to counter this effect. Another group of novel compounds are selective progesterone receptor modulators, which thus far have been shown to reduce menstrual bleeding without the unwanted effect of unscheduled bleeding episodes.

SUMMARY

As menorrhagia is largely a subjective complaint, it is important for successful therapy to be based on an informed patient's choice. Currently, lack of evidence-based practice, poor compliance and unpleasant side effects limit the success of medical therapies contributing to the amount of major surgery performed for this indication. If concomitant therapies succeeded in minimizing the episodes of breakthrough bleeding with the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system, its recommendation as a first choice treatment may be confounded. Further research is needed into efficiency and safety of selective progesterone receptor modulators, which appear to have great potential in reducing menstrual blood loss.