Uterine fibroids: an update on current and emerging medical treatment options
Uterine fibroids are the most common gynecological disorder, classically requiring surgery when symptomatic. Although attempts at finding a nonsurgical cure date back to centuries, it is only around the middle of the last century that serious attempts at a medical treatment were carried out. Initially, both progestins and estrogen-progestin combinations have been utilized, although proof of their usefulness is lacking. A major step forward was achieved when peptide analogs of the GnRH were introduced, first those with superagonist properties and subsequently those acting as antagonists.