1 in 5 women undergoing hysterectomy in the U.S. may not need the procedure

Use of other treatments before hysterectomy for benign conditions in a statewide hospital collaborative

woman-who-undergo-hysterecteroctomy image
This study provides evidence that alternatives to hysterectomy are underutilized in women undergoing hysterectomy for abnormal uterine bleeding, uterine fibroids, endometriosis, or pelvic pain.

It is estimated that one in three women in the United States will have had a hysterectomy by the age of 60.

Although the numbers of hysterectomies are decreasing, a University of Michigan-led study of nearly 3,400 women in Michigan who underwent hysterectomy for benign indications reveals that alternatives to hysterectomy are being underused and that treatment guidelines are often not followed.

Post-surgical pathology showed that nearly one in five (18%) of hysterectomies that were done for benign indications were unnecessary, and that nearly two in five (37.8%) of women under 40 had unsupportive pathology.

Sources and more information

  • Use of other treatments before hysterectomy for benign conditions in a statewide hospital collaborative, ajog, doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2014.11.031, March 2015.
  • Nearly 1 in 5 women who undergo hysterectomy may not need the procedure, University of Michigan, JANUARY 06, 2015.
  • Almost 1 in 5 hysterectomies are ‘unnecessary,’ study finds, medicalnewstoday, 11 January 2015.
  • Nearly One in Five Women Who Undergo Hysterectomy May Not Need the Procedure, elsevier, January 6, 2015.

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