Problems related to the cervical stump at follow-up in laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate our experience with laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy (LASH) and to assess the short- and medium-term outcome.


METHODS
Retrospective analysis of patient and surgery characteristics from chart review and evaluation of patient satisfaction by a questionnaire.


RESULTS
Forty-one patients who underwent LASH were studied with a mean length of follow-up of 27 months. Operative complications consisted of one bladder lesion and one bleeding at the trocar site. Postoperative complications were bladder atony (1), paralytic ileus (1), a pulmonary embolism (1) and vaginal hemorrhage from the colpotomy incision (1). Twenty-five percent of the patients continued to menstruate, and 10% had symptoms of discharge. Overall, 98% of the patients were satisfied with their operation.


CONCLUSIONS
Although preservation of the cervix with laparoscopic hysterectomy for benign diseases was satisfactory in most of the cases, several women had complications of the remaining cervix. Special attention should be paid to the careful treatment of the cervical stump. Further prospective studies are needed to evaluate the advantages of retaining the cervix at laparoscopic hysterectomy.
D000328:Adult; D002584:Cervix Uteri / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007044:Hysterectomy / Q000379:methods*; D010535:Laparoscopy; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014591:Uterine Diseases / Q000601:surgery