Post-Hysterectomy Adaptation: A Review and Report of two Follow-Up Studies

Abstract

Hysterectomy, its indications and its consequences for later health, have been prominent topics in recent psychiatric, gynaecological and lay literature. This study describes the results of two recent surveys, one of 216 women less than 45 years old who had a hysterectomy for non-malignant conditions at a major Sydney hospital. These women were interviewed on the seventh to tenth postoperative day. One hundred and ninety-four were then followed up by questionnaire 13 months later. In a later study carried out at a hospital on the outskirts of Sydney, 100 out of 146 women responded to a follow-up questionnaire approximately one year after their operations. These studies and their relevance to recent similar studies are discussed in terms of post-hysterectomy adaptation and prognostic factors associated with poor psychiatric outcome.