title: Laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy (LAVH) versus total abdominal hysterectomy (TAH) in endometrial carcinoma: prospective cohort study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the feasibility and safety of laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy in the treatment of presumed stage I endometrial cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a prospective cohort study without randomization of 182 consecutive patients who underwent surgery for early endometrial cancer or atypical hyperplasia at the West Kent Gynaecological Oncology Centre, UK. Seventy-four had laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO), and 108 had a total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Lymphadenectomy was performed in 153 patients, and lymph node sampling was performed in 2 patients. Twenty-seven patients with serous papillary endometrial cancer in addition had an omentectomy. The groups were compared for epidemiological and clinical characteristics, surgical outcomes, hospital stay, lymph node harvest, and intraoperative and postoperative complications.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients in the laparoscopy group had less blood loss, similar number of lymph nodes removed, less need for analgesia, and shorter hospital stay but longer operative time than those treated by laparotomy. In our study, we had 4 conversions (5.4%) from laparoscopy to laparotomy. Twenty-eight (41%) patients who had laparoscopic surgery were obese (body mass index [BMI] >30 kg/m2). Postoperative complications were more common in the laparotomy group (34%) than in the laparoscopy group (6%). No major complications occurred in the laparoscopy group. Wound infection was the most common complication in laparotomy patients, and this invariably happened to obese patients (BMI >30 kg/m2). There were 6 readmissions, all from the laparotomy group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Laparoscopic surgery is a safe and reliable alternative to open surgery in the management of early endometrial cancer patients, with significantly reduced hospital stay and complications, especially in those patients with an elevated BMI.
authors.affiliation: West Kent Cancer Centre, Maidstone Hospital, Kent, ME16 1QQ, UK. o.devaja@nhs.net
authors.forename: Omer
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Devaja
authors.forename: Ioanna
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Samara
authors.forename: Andreas J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Papadopoulos
mesh_terms: D000005:Abdomen / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D000368:Aged; D002291:Carcinoma, Papillary / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018284:Cystadenocarcinoma, Serous / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007044:Hysterectomy; D010535:Laparoscopy; D007813:Laparotomy; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome