Gynae Passmed 1 Flashcards
What is adenomyosis?
presence of endometrial tissue within the myometrium, more common in multiparous women towards the end of their reproductive years
Features:
dysmenorrhoea
menorrhagia
enlarged, boggy uterus
Give some risk factors for adenomyosis
High parity
Uterine surgery e.g. any endometrial curettage, endometrial ablation
Previous caesarean section
How should adenomyosis be investigated? Mx?
Ix:
transvaginal ultrasound first-line investigation
MRI is an alternative
Mx:
tranexamic acid to manage menorrhagia
GnRH agonists
uterine artery embolisation
hysterectomy = ‘definitive’ treatment
Define primary amenhorrhea
the failure to establish menstruation by 15 years of age in girls with normal secondary sexual characteristics (such as breast development), or by 13 years of age in girls with no secondary sexual characteristics
Define secondary amenorrhea
cessation of menstruation for 3-6 months in women with previously normal and regular menses, or 6-12 months in women with previous oligomenorrhoea
How should amenorrhea be investigated?
exclude pregnancy with urinary or serum bHCG
FBC, U&Es, coeliac screen, TFTs
FSH and LH (low = hypothalmic cause, high = ovarian cause)
androgen levels (high = ?PCOS) , oestradiol
prolactin
What is androgen insensitivity syndrome?
X-linked recessive condition due to end-organ resistance to testosterone causing genotypically male children (46XY) to have a female phenotype
Features:
‘primary amenorrhoea’
little or no axillary and pubic hair
undescended testes causing groin swellings
breast development may occur
How is androgen insensitivity diagnosed?
buccal smear or chromosomal analysis to reveal 46XY genotype
after puberty, testosterone concentrations are in the high-normal to slightly elevated reference range for postpubertal boys
How is androgen insensitivity managed?
counselling - raise the child as female
bilateral orchidectomy (increased risk of testicular cancer due to undescended testes)
oestrogen therapy
What are the main differentials for bleeding in the first trimester?
miscarriage
ectopic pregnancy
implantation bleeding (dx of exclusion)
cervical ectropion
vaginitis
trauma
polyps
If a woman has a positive pregnancy test and any of the following she should be referred immediately to an early pregnancy assessment service:
pain and abdominal tenderness
pelvic tenderness
cervical motion tenderness
How should bleeding in early pregnancy be managed?
> 6 weeks gestation (or of uncertain gestation) + bleeding = referral to early pregnancy assessment service, transvaginal USS to identify the location of the pregnancy and whether there is a fetal pole and heartbeat
< 6 weeks gestation + bleeding, but NO pain or risk factors for ectopic pregnancy, then they can be managed expectantly.
These women should be advised:
to return if bleeding continues or pain develops
to repeat a urine pregnancy test after 7–10 days and to return if it is positive
a negative pregnancy test means that the pregnancy has miscarried
What are the two types of cervical cancer?
squamous cell cancer (80%)
adenocarcinoma (20%)
How may cervical cancer present?
may be detected during routine cervical cancer screening
abnormal vaginal bleeding: postcoital, intermenstrual or postmenopausal bleeding
vaginal discharge
What are the risk factors for developing cervical cancer?
HPV (particularly serotypes 16,18 & 33) is by far the most important factor
smoking
HIV
early first intercourse, many sexual partners
high parity
lower socioeconomic status
COCP
What is the mechanism by which HPV can cause cervical cancer?
HPV 16 & 18 produces the oncogenes E6 and E7 genes respectively
E6 inhibits the p53 tumour suppressor gene
E7 inhibits RB suppressor gene
What staging determines the management of cervical cancer?
FIGO staging (alongside wish of patient to maintain fertility)
What is FIGO stage 1A?
Confined to cervix, only visible by microscopy and less than 7 mm wide:
A1 = < 3 mm deep
A2 = 3-5 mm deep
What is FIGO stage 1B?
Confined to cervix, clinically visible or larger than 7 mm wide:
B1 = < 4 cm diameter
B2 = > 4 cm diameter
What is FIGO stage 2?
Extension of tumour beyond cervix but not to the pelvic wall
A = upper two thirds of vagina
B = parametrial involvement
What is FIGO Stage 3?
Extension of tumour beyond the cervix and to the pelvic wall
A = lower third of vagina
B = pelvic side wall
NB: Any tumour causing hydronephrosis or a non-functioning kidney is considered stage III
What is FIGO stage 4?
Extension of tumour beyond the pelvis or involvement of bladder or rectum
A = involvement of bladder or rectum
B = involvement of distant sites outside the pelvis
How should stage 1A cervical tumours be managed?
Gold standard of treatment is hysterectomy +/- lymph node clearance
For patients wanting to maintain fertility, a cone biopsy with negative margins can be performed
How should stage 1B cervical cancer be managed?
B1: radiotherapy + chemotherapy (cisplatin)
B2: radical hysterectomy with pelvic lymph node dissection
What are the possible complications of surgical cervical cancer tx?
Cone biopsies and radical trachelectomy may increase risk of preterm birth in future pregnancies
Radical hysterectomy may result in a ureteral fistula
What are the possible complications of radiotherapy for cervical cancer?
Short-term: diarrhoea, vaginal bleeding, radiation burns, pain on micturition, tiredness/weakness
Long-term: ovarian failure, fibrosis of bowel/skin/bladder/vagina, lymphoedema
Who gets screened for cervical cancer? How are the samples tested?
A smear test is offered to all women between the ages of 25-64 years
25-49 years: 3-yearly screening
50-64 years: 5-yearly screening
HPV first system, i.e. a sample is tested for high-risk strains of human papillomavirus (hrHPV) first and cytological examination is only performed if this is positive
What are the ‘special situations’ in cervical cancer screening?
cervical screening in pregnancy is usually delayed until 3 months post-partum unless missed screening or previous abnormal smears
women who have never been sexually active have a very low risk of developing cervical cancer therefore they may wish to opt out of screening
women with HIV or significant immuncompromise should have annual smears
What is the test of cure (TOC) pathway for cervical cancer screening?
individuals who have been treated for CIN1, CIN2, or CIN3 should be invited 6 months after treatment for a test of cure repeat cervical sample in the community
hrHPV +ve and cytologically abnormal =
patient referred for colposcopy
hrHPV +ve but cytologically normal =
the test is repeated at 12 months
if the repeat test is now hrHPV -ve → return to normal recall
if the repeat test is still hrHPV +ve and cytology still normal → further repeat test 12 months later:
If hrHPV -ve at 24 months → return to normal recall
if hrHPV +ve at 24 months → colposcopy
What should be done if the smear sample for cervical cancer screening is inadequate
repeat the sample within 3 months
if two consecutive inadequate samples then → colposcopy
What is the most common treatment for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia?
Large loop excision of transformation zone (LLETZ)
What is a cervical ectropion?
In a cervical ectropion, elevated oestrogen levels (ovulatory phase, pregnancy, COCP use) result in larger area of columnar epithelium (that lines the cervical canal) being present on the ectocervix.
Can be asymptomatic or present with vaginal discharge / post-coital bleeding.
What tx can be used if a cervical ectropion causes troublesome sxs?
Ablative treatment (for example ‘cold coagulation’)
Causes of delayed puberty with short stature?
Turner’s syndrome
Prader-Willi syndrome
Noonan’s syndrome
Causes of delayed puberty with normal stature?
PCOS
androgen insensitivity
Kallman’s syndrome
Klinefelter’s syndrome