What are the usual ways of diagnosing uterine fibroids?
Uterine fibroids are diagnosed by pelvic exam and even more commonly by ultrasound. Often, a pelvic mass cannot be determined to be a fibroid on pelvic exam alone, and ultrasound is very helpful in differentiating it from other conditions such as ovarian tumors. MRI and CT scans can also play a role in diagnosing fibroids, but ultrasound is the simplest, cheapest, and almost without question the best technique for imaging the pelvis. Occasionally, when trying to determine if a fibroid is present in the uterine cavity (endometrial cavity), a hysterosalpingogram (HSG) is done. In this procedure, an ultrasound exam is done while contrast fluid is injected into the uterus from the cervix. The fluid is visualized in the endometrial cavity and thus outline any masses that are inside, such as submucosal fibroids.
