BioSphere Medical Inc. is touting study published in the Journal of Vascular Interventional Radiology indicating that uterine artery embolization compares favorably to laparoscopic occlusion of uterine arteries in the treatment of uterine fibroids.

The Rockland, Mass.-based firm said the study of 58 women with uterine fibroids (or leiomyomas) showed that the rate of recurrence for patients who underwent the UAE procedure was “significantly lower” than in patients who received laparoscopic treatment.

Uterine fibroids are benign tumors that develop within or on the wall of the uterus. The study also showed that the UAE treatment was better at reducing the size of the fibroids and at cutting off blood flow to the tumors.

In the UAE treatment, a catheter is threaded through the uterine artery to deliver the tiny “microspheres” made by BioSphere. Injected into the blood vessels feeding the fibroid, the spheres cut off the blood supply to the tumor, causing it to shrink.