Is hysterectomy a major surgery?

The uterus is not only a symbol of femininity but also an organ that nurtures new life. When a woman suffers from uterine diseases, it is extremely painful, especially for patients with uterine fibroids and uterine cancer. The final choice they face is to have their uterus removed, otherwise their life will end. This will put women in a dilemma and the physical and mental blows they suffer are enormous. Hysterectomy is a major surgery. You need to communicate with the doctor before the surgery and pay attention to postoperative care. Therefore, to ensure the effectiveness of the surgery, you must go to a regular hospital.

Is hysterectomy a major surgery?

1. If there is a serious problem in the uterus, it should be treated with surgical removal, which is a relatively major operation.

2. After the hysterectomy, women will no longer be able to have children, so you should make full preparations before the operation. Post-operative care is also very important. The patient cannot get out of bed within two days and should not have sexual intercourse after half a year.

3. Pay attention to your diet and do not eat irritating foods. It is best to supplement with foods rich in protein and collagen, and pay attention to eating more eggs.

What to pay attention to after hysterectomy:

1. Patients who have had their uterus removed still need to be careful in their daily lives. It is better not to eat some hot foods, such as longan and royal jelly. In fact, such foods are easy to cause inflamed and are also rich in hormones.

2. Patients who have had their uterus removed are advised not to take sitting baths after 6 weeks. In fact, if you take a sitz bath, the vagina is very likely to get infected, so it is recommended to take a shower after removing the uterus. This can effectively prevent vaginal infection.

3. In fact, patients who have had a hysterectomy should also pay attention to their diet and avoid eating some irritating foods. In fact, stimulating foods will aggravate the pain, so you should avoid eating foods such as chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns. It is best to eat high-fiber foods, such as celery.

Can I still have sex after a hysterectomy?

1. Total hysterectomy only cuts to the external cervical os and sutures the vaginal stump, without significant shortening of the vagina. Subtotal hysterectomy preserves the cervix, and the vagina is no different from before the operation. For patients who undergo extensive hysterectomy, the vagina is cut off by several centimeters, but the vagina has a strong ability to expand and contract. For such patients, regular sexual intercourse can help the vagina lengthen and prevent disuse atrophy.

2. You can have sexual intercourse after hysterectomy. Generally, the vaginal stump has healed completely 3 months after the operation. After review by the doctor, if there are no special circumstances, normal sexual intercourse will not "rupture" the vagina.

In what cases do women need a hysterectomy?

1. Pain

(1) Abnormal uterine bleeding

Some people need to undergo a total hysterectomy when medical treatment cannot stop the bleeding appropriately.

(2) Relaxation of the pelvic cavity

People with uterine prolapse, bladder or rectal prolapse should have a hysterectomy before perineal repair to avoid further uterine prolapse.

(3) Urinary incontinence

Patients with urinary incontinence sometimes have their uterus still compressing the bladder or causing prolapse, so it may be possible to consider removing the uterus at the same time as the urinary incontinence surgery.

(4) Chronic pelvic pain

There are many reasons for this pain. According to statistics, for people with chronic pelvic pain, studies have found that 78% of people who underwent hysterectomy showed improvement after the operation, while 22% still showed no improvement. Therefore, people with chronic pelvic pain may consider this operation.

2. Emergency

(1) Severe infection

In some severe cases of suppuration and infection, a total hysterectomy is necessary to remove the infected lesions.

(2) Complications of surgery

It is inevitable that some surgeries will cause great damage to the uterus. Therefore, when no better treatment can be done, total hysterectomy is a necessary indication.

(3) Heavy bleeding after pregnancy

Sometimes postpartum hemorrhage may occur due to placenta previa, early placental detachment, or weak uterine contractions. In an emergency, a total hysterectomy may be required to avoid continued bleeding.

3. Cancer or pre-cancer

(1) Cervical cancer or ovarian cancer

When uterine cancer develops, radical hysterectomy is necessary, so the uterus must also be removed.

(2) Near or distant cancer

For example, colorectal cancer or cancer of the bladder tissues are likely to invade the area around the uterus, so removing them can also prevent it.

(3) Pre-cancer

Some people with severe cervical cell degeneration who do not want to have children anymore, or whose cervical cell degeneration is so severe that the surrounding area cannot be effectively treated, should undergo a hysterectomy.

4. Benign lesions

(1) Ovarian cyst

Sometimes, if the ovarian tumor is too large or in a postmenopausal woman, it can be removed altogether.

(2) Uterine fibroids

Women with uterine fibroids may need a hysterectomy if:

a. When uterine fibroids are larger than those of a woman who has been pregnant for more than 12 weeks and does not wish to become pregnant again, a total hysterectomy should be performed.

b. Uterine fibroids cause heavy bleeding, or long-term excessive menstrual flow and prolonged menstruation leading to anemia, which cannot be cured by medication. At this time, surgical resection is an effective solution.

c. When uterine fibroids grow to the size of a fist, they cause compression of other organs in the pelvis. Surgical removal can relieve the symptoms, and large fibroids are more likely to worsen than small fibroids.

d. The fibroids grow too fast, or after menopause, the fibroids do not shrink but grow larger, requiring hysterectomy for treatment.

e. If a woman is infertile but all other examinations are normal, the cause of infertility may be uterine fibroids. Uterine fibroids may cause habitual miscarriage, which requires surgical treatment.

(3) Chronic infection

Some chronic infections form pus or cysts because the lesions are so large that drugs cannot effectively control their growth and a total hysterectomy is required.

(4) Endometriosis

Endometriosis can cause severe dysmenorrhea or severe pelvic adhesions. In order to completely remove the lesions, a total hysterectomy may be required.