Drs. Mobolaji Odelowo and Zagum Bhatti perform uterine fibroid embolization surgeries at the College Park Heart and Vascular Center in the Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital medical center.

This is one of the few locations to offer the procedure in Houston’s northern corridor, spanning from The Woodlands to Huntsville, the doctors said.

Uterine fibroid embolization surgery is a procedure in which doctors feed a tiny tube into the blood supply to block nutrients from reaching the fibroids, which are small benign tumors on the muscle layers of the uterus. It is a less invasive alternative to having a hysterectomy, Bhatti said.

“It’s a minimally invasive procedure,” Bhatti said. “There are no incisions required.”

Another advantage of UFE surgery is the recovery time. Patients can typically go home in under three hours, and the procedure takes about 45 minutes. A hysterectomy requires three to four days of hospitalization and can take up to eight weeks for recovery.

“Most patients require downtime of about one to three days, and then they’re usually able to get back to their normal activities within a week,” Odelowo said.

Uterine fibroids tend to form due to the effects of female hormones in the uterus, said Odelowo, who has been practicing this procedure for more than a decade.

“A significant proportion of women during their reproductive years will develop fibroids; it’s just that in many of them, the fibroids are subclinical and don’t show,” Odelowo said.

About 90 percent of women have significant reduction of their fibroids after the procedure to the point that their symptoms are typically eliminated, Bhatti said.

Some symptoms of uterine fibroids include heavy menstrual bleeding, pelvic pain, pressure, pain during intercourse, constipation and bloating, Bhatti said.

“Almost 20 percent of premenopausal women have fibroids, and overall,      5-10 percent of premenopausal women have symptoms from it,” Bhatti said.

Although there is not much data on fertility after UFE surgery, most women are able to have children after the procedure, Bhatti said.

The procedure is covered by most insurance providers and is not an expensive out-of-pocket option, Odelowo said.