Q&A of Ovarian Dermoid Cyst During Pregnancy
Question:
I am 22 years old, and 8 weeks pregnant with our 2nd child. During my first OB appointment, my doctor found pain and tenderness on my left side. After 4 ultrasounds and 1 trip to the ER they determined that i have a “Huge Dermoid Cyst” on my left ovary, rather engulfing my entire ovary. It is somewhat genetic, my mother lost an ovary and fallopian tube to a cyst, but still surprising. According to the doctor in the ER the cyst is almost the size of a softball. My Ob/GYN seems to think i should wait to have it removed, but im terrified of waiting. I dont want it to grow or hinder the growth of my unborn baby. Its already huge and causing pain, and I cannot live the next 9 months on vicoden. I have an 18 month old to care for. My questions: How bad is this? Should my OB/GYN be more concerned? What is standard precedure for removing this? Can it be done while pregnant? thank you so much!
Answer:
Dermoid cysts of the ovaries are widespread and very common at pregnant age. Because of a dermoid cyst cotains much fat, it can easily be identified and diagnosed by ultrasound. Because the cysts is twisting or it presses on surrounding structures, pain from a cyst can occur. Otherwise, the ovarian cysts can be quite large and does not cause pain or other problems.
For you should have a question: Why do you have pain? If you have pain from another cause (eg, ligament pain, improving the pregnancy continues, or a bladder or bowel problem), then it makes sense to leave the cyst alone.
On the other hand, if the pain is evident from the ovarian cyst, and not improve it, you should remove it.
In general we suggest to wait until the second trimester of pregnancy ( more than 12 weeks) to do surgery in pregnancy. All major organs are formed within the first 12 weeks. While anesthesia is probably safe during pregnancy, we use the fetus for all chemicals measured, if possible. Even the highest risk of miscarriage is time for the first 12 weeks.
You should go back and explore these issues with your doctor.