Objectives: The study objective was to review all cases of abdominal hysterectomy performed at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Nigeria over a 10-year period. Design/method: A retrospective study was done of the case files of all patients who had abdominal hysterectomy between January 1, 1999 and December 31, 2008. Information obtained included age and parity, indications, as well as complications of surgery. Results: Hysterectomy accounted for 224 of 1370 major gynecological surgeries (16.4%). Abdominal hysterectomy was responsible for 79.1% (177) of all cases of hysterectomy. Eleven (11; 6.2%) cases were subtotal. The modal age range was 51–60 years (43.0%) followed by the 31–40 years age group (21.5%). Ninety-seven (97; 54.8%) of the patients were grandmultiparous, while nulliparity accounted for 10.7% of cases. The most common indication for hysterectomy was uterine fibroids (41.8%), followed by dysfunctional uterine bleeding (26.2%) and ovarian tumors (14.3%). Postoperative complications were encountered in 43.6% of cases and constituted mainly hemorrhage (13.6%), sepsis (11.3%), and anemia (7.9%). The mortality rate was 4.0%. Conclusions: Total abdominal hysterectomy accounted for the majority of hysterectomies and was associated with significant morbidity. Adequate training and more use of the vaginal route is recommended to reduce complications. (J GYNECOL SURG 27:79)
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