[Complications of hysterectomies]

The authors review results concerning 1,127 hysterectomies performed in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the La Grave Hospital (Toulouse, France). They compare those of abdominal hysterectomy and those of vaginal hysterectomy (359). With regard to vaginal procedures, they draw a distinction between simple hysterectomies and prolapse repairs. The results of this series are comparable with those in the literature: similar overall morbidity after vaginal (41 per cent) and abdominal (33 per cent) hysterectomy. This morbidity was lower in cases of simple vaginal hysterectomy (26 per cent). The majority of complications were infectious or febrile: 29 per cent of abdominal hysterectomies and 30 per cent of vaginal hysterectomies, including 16.4 per cent of simple vaginal hysterectomies. The authors compared abdominal hysterectomies and simple vaginal hysterectomies. The latter have many advantages: rarer mortality, overall morbidity and thrombo-embolic complications, shorter hospital stay, more comfortable and less costly postoperative course. Thus when the choice is available, gynecologists should opt for vaginal hysterectomy.