Our Three Year Experience with Laparoscopic-Assisted Vaginal Hysterectomy (LAVH)

For the past several years LAVH has become a more common procedure. The publication of the first laparoscopic hysterectomy in 1989 encouraged us to perform our first LAVH in October 1990. In the following three years, October 1990 to September 1993, we performed 175 LAVHs. The charts were reviewed and data for length of surgery and blood loss was obtained from anesthesia records. Indications were the same as for vaginal hysterectomy. The average age for the patient was 42 years with a range of 23 to 73 years. The range of uterine weight was 41 to 462 gms, with an average of 158 gms. Length of surgery was an average of 109 minutes with a range of 53 minutes to 420 minutes. Length of stay ranged from one to five days with an average of 2.3 days and 2.1 days when patients with bladder repair were excluded. Blood loss average was 302 ml. Only two major complications occurred. One patient had a bladder laceration and one had to undergo exploratory laparotomy because of inability to achieve hemostasis from the right vaginal angle. She was the only patient to require blood transfusion.