Racial Disparities in Medical Management of Uterine Fibroids Prior to Myomectomy or Hysterectomy

The symptomatic burden of uterine fibroids has been demonstrated to disproportionately affect Black and Hispanic women. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate if racial disparities seen in disease severity in regards to bleeding symptoms and surgical management also applied to presurgical medical management. A retrospective chart review evaluated women aged 18-50 with the diagnosis of fibroids who underwent a myomectomy or hysterectomy between 2012 and 2021. Black and Hispanic women were more likely to have preoperative hemoglobin values under 10 mg/dL (p < 0.001) and had higher rates of preoperative blood transfusions than White women (p = 0.001). Black women utilized the highest number of medications before excisional procedures, followed by Hispanic women. Asian women reported the lowest average (p = 0.037). There was no preferential use of GnRH analogues, intrauterine devices, or oral hormonal therapies between races. Minor procedures were infrequently utilized without statistically significant variations among races. This study confirms previous evidence that Black and Hispanic women are more severely affected by uterine fibroids. This severity is mirrored in increased utilization of medications, but patients continue to be under optimized prior to surgery. Further research should identify factors preventing these groups from achieving better symptom control preoperatively.