FREQUENCY OF UTERINE LEIOMYOMA WITH ITS RELATED RISK FACTORS OBSERVED AT A TERTIARY CARE CENTRE IN KARACHI

Objective: To study the frequency of uterine leiomyoma with its risk factors. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out between January 2020 to June 2020 including women who were diagnosed with uterine leiomyomas in the Department of Gynecology, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center (JPMC), Karachi. All the major risk factors including demographic details, family history, marital status, parity, use of oral contraceptives and co-morbids were studied in 300 females using a questionnaire. The data was analyzed with the statistical program Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0. Results: A total number of 300 patients having uterine leiomyomas were included in the study. The mean and standard deviation of the patients’ age was 42.52±7.98 and patients’ weight was 59.8±9.12. The mean and standard deviation of the patients’ BMI was 23.4±3.85 and patients’ height was 63.01±2.23. The demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients are presented in Table-I and II. Leiomyomas were reported mostly in women between the ages of 36-40 years (28%), followed by 46-50 years (20%) and 51-55 years (14.3%). 10% of the women reported hypertension as a co-morbid. 3.8% were both hypertensive and diabetic. 76.9% females presented with abnormal uterine bleeding and 69.8% had anemia. Most of the women with leiomyomas were para 3+ (36.9%) and para 3 (20.9%). 22.2% women were nulliparous. 72.2% women had a single fibroid and 21.6% had two or more fibroids. 5.7% women had a family history of fibroids. 5.4% women were using some form of hormonal contraception. Conclusion: Risk factors for uterine leiomyomas were identified and prevalence of these risk factors in patients with leiomyomas was observed. Keywords: Leiomyoma, Risk factors, Uterine fibroid.