Relationship between Race/Ethnicity and Hysterectomy Outcomes for Benign Gynecologic Conditions

To examine the association between race/ethnicity, route of hysterectomy, and risk of inpatient surgical complications.

Cross-sectional analysis (Canadian Task Force classification III).

Inpatient hospitals in the United States.

There were 114 719 women aged 18 and older from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample who underwent an elective hysterectomy for benign indications using International Classification of Diseases codes.

Multivariable logistic regression was performed to examine the association between race/ethnicity and route of hysterectomy and surgical complications, after adjusting for patient characteristics, clinical factors, and hospital characteristics. Analyses were weighted to provide national estimates of prevalence. The rate of minimally invasive hysterectomy was 55.0% in white women, 28.6% in black women, 50.1% in Hispanic women, and 45.6% in other race/ethnic categories. Compared with white women, black women had a .55 odds (95% confidence interval, .52-.59) of undergoing minimally invasive hysterectomy, after adjusting for patient, clinical, and hospital characteristics. This finding remained consistent across quartiles of median household income of residence, primary payer, and diagnosis of myomas. Among women who had an elective hysterectomy, 6091 experienced a complication, representing an estimated 30 455 women nationwide. The rate of surgical complications was 5.3% in white women, 5.9% in black women, 4.6% in Hispanic women, and 5.1% in women of other racial/ethnic groups. There was no difference in odds of experiencing a surgical complication between white and black women (odds ratio, 1.03; 95% confidence interval, .93-1.13) after adjusting for patient, clinical, and hospital characteristics. This finding remained consistent across quartiles of median household income of residence, primary payer, and route of hysterectomy.

Among women undergoing an elective hysterectomy, black women were less likely to receive minimally invasive hysterectomy compared with white women. However, the rate of inpatient surgical complications did not vary significantly by race/ethnicity. Further research is encouraged to identify and address the influential factors behind the disparity in minimally invasive hysterectomy use among black women in the United States.