LSH – women who suffer from small to medium fibroids
June 26, 2009 by admin
Filed under Hysterectomy
Important –> This article is a brief overview and does not go into great detail about the well documented adverse effects of a hysterectomy. A hysterectomy is the surgical removal of very important parts of the female and should not be taken lightly.
Laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy (LSH) may be the surgical solution for many women who suffer from small to medium fibroids, adenomyosis, abnormal bleeding or endometriosis.
Who should consider LSH?
Women who have tried less invasive therapies such as endometrial ablation and hormone therapy without success are good candidates for laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy. Why would a woman want to consider LSH? The procedure can significantly reduce the symptoms which may occur after more radical forms of hysterectomy.
What is laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy?
This fairly new approach to hysterectomy is accomplished through small incisions in the abdomen. A laparoscope (a slender optical tube which allows the physician to look inside the pelvic cavity) is inserted through the first incision. Instruments for cutting the uterus away from its blood supply are inserted through subsequent incisions. Once the uterus has been detached from the interior of the body, it is cut into small strips. The small strips are then pulled out through the previous incisions. An LSH leaves the ovaries and the cervix intact.
What are the benefits of not removing the ovaries and the cervix as part of a hysterectomy?
By leaving the ovaries a woman is not subjected to the immediate onset of surgical menopause. In most cases, after a laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy menopause will occur naturally and on much the same schedule as it would have had a hysterectomy not taken place. Sometimes, because of reduced flow to the ovaries, there may be some menopausal symptoms associated with a hysterectomy in which the ovaries are not excised. The cervix acts as an important supportive tissue for many pelvic ligaments. Removing it may destabilize the entire area. Additionally, leaving the cervix can diminish vaginal dryness and decreased sexual desire which are sometimes side effects from a total hysterectomy. A total hysterectomy is an operation in which both the uterus and the cervix are taken out.
Does laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy pose additional risks beyond those inherent in more traditional hysterectomy?
Any hysterectomy is major, traumatic surgery which should not be undergone without great thought.
However, LSH as a procedure presents “negligible” increased risk over conventional hysterectomy procedures.
Still, a woman should be aware that she remains vulnerable to cervical and ovarian cancer after having a laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy. Therefore, it is imperative that she stay in close contact with her physician and continue to take all the recommended cancer screening tests on the schedule advised by her doctor.
Hysterectomy has become increasingly controversial in recent years. Still, for women who have chronic reproductive diseases, hysterectomy may represent the best solution to their problems. Those who suffer from non-malignant maladies may want to consider laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy as it is far less invasive. LSH also offers the potential for avoiding many menopausal symptoms which may rear their heads after other types of hysterectomy. Only after consultation with her gynecologist can a woman make a fully informed decision on whether laparoscopic supracervical hysterectomy is the right procedure for her specific ailments.
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This article makes it sound like laparoscopy to perform hysterectomy is simple and inconsequential.
It describes the alleged benefits while not providing the well documented adverse effects. If you watch the surgery being performed on youtube (click on the video for physicians, not the sanitized patient version) you will quickly see that this is highly invasive destructive surgery.
Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus, a reproductive, sexual, hormone responsive organ that supports the bladder and bowel. Whether the surgery is performed abdominally, vaginally, hands-on laparoscopically or laparoscopically by a gynecologist controlled robot, a hormone responsive sex organ is removed, the vagina is shortened, and there is a loss of support to the bladder and bowel. Women who experienced uterine orgasm before the surgery will not experience it after the uterus is removed.
When the uterus is removed women have three times greater incidence of cardiovascular disease than women with an intact uterus. When the ovaries are removed the incidence seven times greater.
There are 22 million women in the United States whose female organs have been surgically removed. Only about 2% were life saving and 98% were elective, a euphemism for unwarranted. Girls and women are not educated about the functions of female organs and they are not informed about the adverse effects of hysterectomy that have been well documented in medical literature for over a century.
An article that makes hysterectomy sound simple and inconsequential is dangerous to women.
Thank you Nora and I have added an extra disclaimer up top. I do not feel that the article made it seem like I was saying anything close to what you mentioned, it is a serious operation and does have adverse effects.
Regardless I appreciate your concern.