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Ovarian Cysts

Ovarian cysts — fluid-filled sacs of varying sizes on your ovaries — are common and mostly harmless. If you have ovarian cysts and they’re causing problems, the expert women’s health care team at Mesbah OB/GYN in Garden City, New York, can help. They offer effective ways of treating this condition, from medication to surgery. If you think you might have ovarian cysts, call Mesbah OB/GYN today, or use the online form to book an appointment.

serving Garden City, Mineola, East Meadow, Levittown, Long Island, NY, and the surrounding areas

What are ovarian cysts?

Ovarian cysts are sacs of fluid in or on your ovaries. These cysts are very common, often causing no symptoms and disappearing naturally. Because of this, you could have ovarian cysts without ever realizing it.

There are several different kinds of ovarian cysts, including:

Functional cysts

Functional cysts don’t usually cause any problems and frequently resolve without treatment.

Teratomas

Teratomas consist of bodily tissues and may grow before menopause.

Cystadenoma

A cystadenoma is a large cyst that’s typically benign (noncancerous).

Endometrioma

These cysts develop when you have endometriosis.

Occasionally, ovarian cysts do become uncomfortable. It’s also possible for large ovarian cysts to make an ovary twist painfully. If your ovarian cyst bleeds or bursts, it can cause sudden, severe pain.

How are ovarian cysts diagnosed?

Because many ovarian cysts don’t cause significant symptoms, your OB/GYN is most likely to find them during your well-woman exam. They may also discover you have ovarian cysts when you undergo a diagnostic procedure for another purpose.

If you’re experiencing symptoms that ovarian cysts could cause, Mesbah OB/GYN has ultrasound facilities on-site. Your gynecologist can then examine your internal organs in detail and determine the size, shape, and density of any cysts.

How are ovarian cysts treated?

If your ovarian cysts aren’t causing you any problems, you might not need to treat them, and they could well go away naturally.

Your gynecologist might recommend watchful waiting, which means checking the ovarian cysts at regular intervals to see if they change. Another option is to use hormonal birth control to prevent new ovarian cysts from forming.

If your ovarian cysts are causing unpleasant symptoms or growing significantly larger, you might need surgery. A cystectomy is a procedure where your surgeon removes the cyst. With an oophorectomy, they take out the entire ovary. It’s usually possible to perform these procedures using minimally invasive surgical techniques.

One approach is laparoscopy, where your surgeon uses small incisions they make in your abdomen to insert a laparoscope — a slim instrument with a light and a tiny camera on the end. The laparoscope sends images of your ovaries to a screen for your surgeon to use so they don’t need to make large cuts into your abdomen.

Another approach is robotic surgery using the state-of-the-art da Vinci® system.

If you suspect you have symptoms of ovarian cysts or you want to schedule a well-woman exam, call Mesbah OB/GYN today, or book an appointment online.