Prevalence of abnormal uterine bleeding according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics Classification (PALM-COEIN) among reproductive-aged women admitted in a tertiary hospital in Las Piñas

ABSTRACT

Objective@#To determine the prevalence of the causes of abnormal uterine bleeding based on the FIGO (PALM-COEIN) Classification, among patients admitted at a tertiary hospital in Las Pinas City@*Methods@#A cross sectional (retrospective) study was done. Patients aged 15-50 years old who were admitted due to abnormal uterine bleeding from January 2017 to December 2019 were included. Patients with AUB due to pregnancy, vaginitis, bleeding before menarche, and bleeding after menopause were excluded from the study. Patient’s data as to age, obstetrical score, co-morbidity, bleeding patterns were tabulated.@*Results@#A total of 455 subjects were included in the study. Results showed that the most common causes of abnormal uterine bleeding among admitted patients in Perpetual Help Medical Center Las Piñas from January 2017 – December 2019 were due to structural causes (91%). Most prevalent was bleeding due to polyps (50.5%), followed by adenomyosis (18.8%), leiomyoma (16.04%), and malignancy (6.2%). Prevalence of non-structural causes of bleeding was 0.4% for coagulopathy, 3.3% due to ovulatory dysfunction, 4.6% due to endometrial dysfunction, and 0.2% for AUB-N.@*Conclusion@#Based on this 3-year retrospective study, structural causes are the most common causes of AUB, comprising about 91% of all patients admitted for AUB. The most common structural causes are AUB-P (50.5%), followed by AUB-A, AUB-L and AUB-M. Prompt recognition of the causes of AUB is very important, to prevent complications such as severe anemia and shock. Proper treatment, be it surgical or medical, also depends on the exact cause of AUB.