Our Uterine Fibroids Embolisation (UFE) program started in 1999 and since then we have already performed almost 250 cases. Our practice is based in two different institutions in Sao Paulo city. One is a public hospital where we take care of low-income women, and the other one is a private hospital where we assist health insured or self-paid patients. Since the beginning we understood that wherever UFE could be performed, the most important thing in order to be successful would be our engagement with all the details concerning such clinical program. In other words, as interventional radiologists it would not be enough achieving a procedure well done but it would be necessary to be directly involved with patient selection and post-operative care as well. Thus we selected and trained gynecologists, anesthesiologists, radiologists, nurses and technicians to work harmoniously with the same purpose: providing a multidisciplinary approach to woman health care. We carefully discussed and prepared the clinical protocol and we opened a consultation office to see and follow up all the patients. After getting our initial results we shared them with the medical community through papers and talks presented in scientific meetings.

We also organized some symposiums and workshops where we discussed and showed the technique though life case demonstrations. We have also developed some communication ways, like our website (www.webmioma.com.br), to inform and educate the general population.

We expected to see some reactions coming from the gynecologic community mainly concerned with corporative issues. But there is not corporatism strong enough to stop the progress of Medicine.  “Against facts there are not arguments”, has already been said properly; and the fact is that the clinical follow up after UFE has achieved a high degree of satisfaction in women who underwent this procedure. Our results have been similar to those already published around the world.

From a technical point of view UFE could be considered as a straight procedure. This means that the procedure could be performed with a simple infrastructure. This is absolutely true and the evidence is that despite the fact that part of our work takes place in a public hospital with limited resources we have achieved good results.  Using re-sterilized catheters and guide wires that we bring from the private hospital and with particles vials often donated by the companies, only last year we did almost 70 cases in Hospital Heliópolis, the only public institution to offer a UFE program for poor patients in Brazil.  

Nowadays we are engaged in raising financial resources not only to keep this well-fare program running but also to develop some clinical and experimental researches that could represent our contribution to the scientific community.

Interventional Radiologists at Hospital Santa Catarina and Hospital Heliópolis in Sao Paulo City - contact can be made through webmioma@webmioma.com.br.