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Understanding the complexities of excision surgery and its role in managing endometriosis is crucial for patients. Our expert guest, Dr. Lora Liu, shares her wealth of experience in this field, offering insights about what to expect from the surgery and recovery process.
• Discussion on the effectiveness of excision surgery for pain relief
• Importance of preparation and prehab, including physical therapy
• Distinction between recurrence of endometriosis and symptoms
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0:00
Life moves fast and so should the answers to your biggest questions. Welcome to EndoBattery's Quick Connect, your direct line to expert insights Short, powerful and right to the point. You send in the questions, I bring in the experts and in just five minutes you get the knowledge you need. No long episodes, no extra time needed, and just remember expert opinions shared here are for general information and not for personalized medical advice. Always consult your provider for your case-specific guidance. Got a question? Send it in and let's quickly get you the answers. I'm your host, alana, and it's time to connect. Today I'm joined by expert excision specialist, dr Laura Laura Liu, who focuses on endometriosis excision. She dedicates her career to helping those with endometriosis by empowering them, validating them and helping them heal. She's here to cut through the noise and give you the straightforward answers you need. So let's dive in. How effective is excision surgery in reducing pain and preventing reoccurrence?
Speaker 2:
1:09
So in treating pain. I can't answer that I don't know, because everybody's process is different. There's some patients and I'd say this to all my patients you know I have no idea how much your pain will improve after surgery. It can be 30% improvement, it can be 50% improvement, it can be 100% improvement. I don't have a crystal ball, I can't predict that. My hope is that it's 100% improvement. As you mentioned before a lot of times, the surgery does help but it can't get rid of all of the pain because the body's been traumatized for years and decades and just a four-hour surgery can't undo all of that. So I do think that it can be highly effective in some patients For pain relief. I think it can be if and I tell my patients if your symptoms are coming from endometriosis, by removing the endometriosis you can expect improvement in the symptoms. But I don't know if you can get resolution like a complete resolution For recurrence of endometriosis. I think the literature is in the hands of an experienced excision surgeon. It's about 20 to 30%.
Speaker 1:
2:16
And there's a difference between reoccurrence and persistence. That's another thing, you have to look at.
Speaker 2:
2:21
And there's also a difference between recurrence of disease, which is less than 20 to 30 percent, and recurrence of symptoms, Because there are times where patients will have recurrent symptoms but they don't have recurrent disease. And you know this because you do another surgery, you go in and you still remove specimens and they all come back negative for endometriosis. So so you know it was a recurrence of disease, it was recurrence of symptoms.
Speaker 1:
2:47
Right. How should people prepare for excision surgery? I had someone say I'm getting ready for my excision surgery. Are there things I should do to prepare for my excision surgery, whether that's diet, medication, lifestyle changes, what have you seen? Your patients benefit the most from doing pre-excision surgery.
Speaker 2:
3:04
Yeah, no, if we have time, I always like my patients to get in to see a pelvic floor physical therapist for some prehab before surgery, because I feel like it does help with the recovery afterwards and also then they have a relationship with the PT and they can continue the work after surgery, which I think is it's just, it's really nice. I mean, I like them to do that kind of like a prehab. So lifestyle, I think, dietary modifications you know I I'm not a nutritionist, I'm not a dietitian. I don't give out like, oh, go on the anti-inflammatory diet for six months before surgery. Some surgeons do recommend that and they make it mandatory.
Speaker 2:
3:40
I don't, I'm not that militant when it comes to that. I do try to tell my patients look, try to get in the best shape as you can, whether it be by let's not go out and eat fast food three times a week every day before surgery. Let's try to incorporate some whole foods, some you know some some nutrition, because your body is going to need to repair itself after surgery and the way that it repairs itself is through nutrition and you know what you put in it's fuel, it's building blocks for your recovery. So I do like that as well as like a prehab, like I said, with pelvic floor physical therapy.
Speaker 1:
4:19
That's a wrap for this Quick Connect. I hope today's insights helped you move forward with more clarity and confidence. Do you have more questions? Keep them coming, send them in and I'll bring you the expert answers. You can send them in by using the link in the top of the description of this podcast episode or by emailing contact at endobatterycom or visiting the endobatterycom contact page. Until next time, keep feeling empowered through knowledge.