Minimally invasive hysterectomy may be underused

(HealthDay)—In 2012, minimally invasive hysterectomy was underused for gynecologic cancers, according to a study published online Oct. 7 in Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Katharine M. Esselen, M.D., M.B.A., from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the 2012 National Inpatient Sample to examine hysterectomies in the United States performed for gynecologic malignancies.

The researchers found that an estimated 46,450 hysterectomies were performed for gynecologic malignancy in 2012 in the United States. Of these, 61, 9, 27, and 3 percent, respectively, were performed for uterine, cervical, ovarian, and other gynecologic malignancies. Minimally invasive hysterectomy was used in 50, 43, and 8.5 percent of uterine, cervical, and ovarian cancer cases, respectively. For black women, the odds of undergoing minimally invasive hysterectomy were decreased for uterine and cervical cancers (adjusted odds ratios, 0.5 and 0.56). For uterine cancer, the odds of undergoing minimally invasive hysterectomy were decreased for those without insurance or with Medicaid. Patients in the South and West versus the Northeast were less and more likely, respectively, to undergo minimally invasive hysterectomy for uterine cancer (adjusted odds ratios, 0.72 and 1.48, respectively).

"Minimally invasive hysterectomy for gynecologic malignancies remained underused in 2012; there were striking racial disparities associated with use of minimally invasive hysterectomy for uterine and cervical cancers," the authors write.

Copyright © 2015 HealthDay. All rights reserved.