Ovarian Drilling

PCOS & Ovarian Drilling

 

Overview

Laparoscopic Ovarian Drilling… A Solution for PCOS, or a Needless Complication?
Laparoscopic Ovarian Drilling is an ovarian surgery has a proven track record in stimulating ovulation in women with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). This surgery may also benefit androgenic symptoms (such as hirsutism and acne), but on the other hand, it may not. This Ovary Surgery seems to vary from woman to woman. Like any significant surgery, any kind of PCOS surgery carries risks of complications that must be weighed against other alternative treatments. If you have PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome), you may want to consider alternatives to surgery, such as a better diet, exercise, and pharmaceutical or nutraceutical supplementation.

 

Causes

What Causes PCOS and Insulin Resistance?
Before we move into a discussion about surgery, let’s examine why surgery can ultimately be ineffective. It starts with what PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), or PCOD (Polycystic Ovarian Disorder), actually is. Contrary to what its name suggests, it’s not, primarily, a condition of the ovaries. In fact, it’s a hormonal disorder—the most common of all women’s hormonal disorders, even.

The condition is rooted in Insulin Resistance. This basically means that your body loses its ability to properly break down glucose from the blood stream. Your body—and your ovaries, in particular—try to compensate for reduced insulin sensitivity by producing excessive amounts of hormones. The resulting hormonal imbalance can have ramifications in many different bodily systems.

It’s because Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal imbalance that it manifests in so many different ways. In many women, the imbalance of the sex hormones—including androgens—can lead to difficulty conceiving a child. For others, an increase in testosterone production can cause acne, baldness, excessive hair growth, and more.

But if the disorder’s roots as a hormonal imbalance, influenced by Insulin Resistance, point to how tricky it can be, it also points to the best ways to treat the condition—and, of course, how not to treat it.

 

Health Risks

Risks of Managing Anovulation and Infertility
There are times when a medical professional might feel like the best way to remedy a patient’s disorder is to remove the body part that is causing the offence; for instance, a woman with breast cancer might have part of her breast removed, and someone with a thyroid problem might have the entire thyroid gland taken out. The line of thinking here is clear and not at all unreasonable, though it’s typically seen as a last resort. It makes sense that if a problem can literally be removed from the body, it’s a sensible course of action.

But there are other instances in which taking this kind of action might be ineffective or unnecessary—or even outright dangerous. Such is the case with many of the surgical procedures used to treat PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). Doctors sometimes suggest that the best way to treat this disorder is simply to remove part or even all of the ovaries, a procedure that can be done in several different ways. More and more, however, physicians are realizing that this isn’t the best way to treat this condition—and that it may cause more harm than help. However, some studies show the benefits of ovarian drilling are that it doesn’t induce either hyperstimulation syndrome or multiple pregnancies that can occur with pharmaceuticals.

Risks of this procedure need to be considered carefully though. They include, but are not limited to: bleeding, development of adhesions or scar tissue on your pelvic organs, pain and infection. While pregnancy rates range from 30% to 85% the largest success rates are higher in women within the normal range for Body Mass Index. Since weight loss seems to hold a better key to conception, today many experts are saying the risks of ovarian damage and other complications don’t outweigh the benefits of the surgery.

The desire to have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) removed from your body is a perfectly understandable, of course. It’s an insidious and at times heartbreaking condition, especially when it leads to anovulation and infertility. And this isn’t the only one way in which the condition can affect you. Other known symptoms include skin problems, hair problems, obesity, emotional problems, and more.

What’s more, the condition shows itself in many different ways; it might look very different from one woman to the next, presenting with a very different set of symptoms. Therefore it can cause great frustration, be tricky to diagnose, and hard to treat. That it causes frustration, exhaustion, and even despair in so many women isn’t at all difficult to understand.

On top of all that, it’s a common condition, affecting millions of women—so of course, the desire for a suitable, safe, and effective treatment is high. In the past, doctors have sometimes recommended surgery, but this is becoming increasingly uncommon, because it’s not only risky, but often ineffective.

 

Treatment Options

Ovarian Drilling as a Treatment Option
Once upon a time, surgical procedures were used somewhat commonly to remedy this condition. High on the list of most commonly used surgeries was what is known as laparoscopic ovarian drilling. This basically means destroying part of the ovarian tissue. Destroying part of the tissue sometimes results in a decrease the level of androgens produced; because this is one of the main hormones that causes problems with this disorder, many women suffering from this condition think that an ovarian operation is a reasonable form of treatment.

Other treatment options can work in much the same way. Ovarian wedge resection is another type of ovarian surgery for women with PCOS, in which part of the ovarian tissue is removed. The thinking behind these two surgeries is the same. In addition, many women have underwent hysterectomies as a way of treating the symptoms of PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), removing both the uterus, one or both of the ovaries, and sometimes even the cervix as a way of dealing with the disorder.

For some women — when routes like pharmaceuticals and weight loss aren’t helpful — Ovarian drilling might help. According to experts in France, “The results in terms of ovulation restoration and live births make it [ovarian drilling] an attractive alternative with less complications such as multiple pregnancies and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome.”

But these treatments like ovarian drilling and ovarian wedge resection all offer limited efficacy and it seems like it varies from one woman to the next. While there have been some reports of women getting pregnant after having the procedure done, it’s also possible for the surgery to result in scarring and tissue damage. When it comes to ‘curing’ PCOS, ovarian drilling might not meet your particular needs. For example, a study in New Zealand concluded, “… while there is evidence that ovarian surgery may decrease androgen levels in some women with PCOS, the evidence that this translates into a clear improvement in hirsutism and acne is less clear.”

The fact that these treatments are limited in their effectiveness is unsurprising; as they are really borne of the fundamental misunderstanding of what PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) is all about. The thinking behind these procedures is that the disorder is ultimately an ovarian condition, but of course, the truth is that it’s a hormonal imbalance, rooted in Insulin Resistance. An Oophorectomy (Ovary Removal of one or both of your ovaries)6 or removing part of the ovary might lead to a decrease in the production of certain hormones, but it’s very unlikely that it will remedy the effects of the condition altogether—because, of course, it does nothing to treat the underlying Insulin Resistance.

 

Natural Therapies

Treating the Cause Naturally
Rather than treat the symptoms, some doctors are moving away from surgeries and starting to propose methods for dealing more directly with Insulin Resistance. This is very good news for women suffering from PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), because Insulin Resistance is entirely manageable—and what’s more, it can be controlled by entirely natural, surgery-free methods.

This isn’t to say that Insulin Resistance is anything less than a very serious condition. The truth is that, when it’s not treated, it can eventually develop into very serious health complications such as diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome, and yes, PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). Additionally, it can result in excessive weight gain and obesity.

But treating it is as easy as changing your lifestyle, adding healthy changes to your diet and increasing your level of physical activity. Indeed, simply adding exercise to your daily routine can do much to manage this condition. Start by adding just thirty minutes of exercise, five days a week; you might see a difference very, very quickly! Exercise has been proven to increase insulin production—an obvious boon for anyone suffering Insulin Resistance—and it will also help you lose weight and increase your overall health.

As for nutrition, you don’t have to starve yourself or go on a hunger diet in order to lose weight, get healthy, and control PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). No, you really just need to increase the amount of nutrients you take in. Make sure you’re getting plenty of proteins, at least one per meal. And don’t make them fatty meats, but lean ones, preferably from grass-fed organic animals. Consume lots of vegetables and a moderate amount of fruit, too. And of course, cut out the bad stuff—refined carbohydrates, refined sugars and foods with sugars added, stimulants, processed foods, and so forth. People with Insulin Resistance have a hard time processing carbohydrates, so overall carb intake should also be reduced.

Also, make sure you have a support system. Having the encouragement and built-in accountability that comes from a support system will help you remain focused, patient, and determined to get healthy and kick the effects of your condition. This kind of healthy approach to managing Insulin Resistance, determination is really what it’s all about. Get with another lady or two who are willing to go walking with you, even just once a week; it can make all the difference in the world.

And of course, make sure to check out the different resources and supplies made available by Insulite Labs. A true leader in the field of insulin research and treatment, Insulite Labs offers plenty of education articles, informative resources that will help you understand how leading a healthier life can control the effects of your disorder. Also, look into the Insulite PCOS System, a natural way to combat the effects of this condition.

Simply by enacting changes in your lifestyle—in what you eat, and in how much exercise you get—you can manage the effects of Insulin Resistance, something that’s certainly happy news. It isn’t easy, necessarily, but it’s certainly preferable, and more effective, than undergoing invasive surgery!

http://pcos.about.com/od/callingyourdoctor/f/ovariandrilling.htm

http://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/Polycystic_Ovary_Syndrome.cfm

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21840744

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14617458

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21511534

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/oophorectomy/MY00554


Next Steps

  1. Take the PCOS Quiz!  Get your score and assess your hormone health risks.
  2. Join our Facebook Sisterhood Group Pose your questions to this group of like-minded women. Get the answers to your questions and the support you need.
  3. Checkout the Hormone Reset. Guided Practices to eliminate anxiety, lose weight and boost energy.

We are committed to helping women reverse their symptoms of hormone imbalance – a major cause of excess weight gain, adult acne, unwanted facial hair, depression, anxiety, and heartbreaking female infertility.

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