Effects of Obesity on Peri- and Postoperative Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Robotic versus Conventional Hysterectomy
Malin Brunes, Ulrika Johannesson, Henrike Häbel, Marie Westergren Söderberg, Marion Ek
Abstract
STUDY OBJECTIVE: To assess if women with obesity have increased complication rates compared with women with normal weight undergoing hysterectomy for benign reasons and if the mode of hysterectomy affects the outcomes. DESIGN: Cohort study. SETTING: Prospectively collected data from 3 Swedish population-based registers. PATIENTS: Women undergoing a total hysterectomy for benign indications in Sweden between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2017. The patients were grouped according to the World Health Organization's classification of obesity. INTERVENTIONS: Intraoperative and postoperative data were retrieved from the surgical register up to 1 year after the hysterectomy. Different modes of hysterectomy in patients with obesity were compared, such as open abdominal hysterectomy (AH), traditional laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH), vaginal hysterectomy (VH), and robot-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy (RTLH). MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Out of 12,386 women who had a total hysterectomy during the study period, we identified 2787 women with normal weight and 1535 women with obesity (body mass index ≥30). One year after the hysterectomy, the frequency of complications was higher in women with obesity than in women with normal weight (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]) 1.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-1.8). In women with obesity, AH was associated with a higher overall complication rate (aOR 1.8; 95% CI, 1.2-2.6) and VH had a slightly higher risk of intraoperative complications (aOR 4.4; 95% CI, 1.2-15.8), both in comparison with RTLH. Women with obesity had a higher rate of conversion to AH with conventional minimally invasive hysterectomy (TLH: aOR 28.2; 95% CI, 6.4-124.7 and VH: 17.1; 95% CI, 3.5-83.8, respectively) compared with RTLH. AH, TLH, and VH were associated with a higher risk of blood loss >500 mL than RTLH (aOR 11.8; 95% CI, 3.4-40.5; aOR 8.5; 95% CI, 2.5-29.5; and aOR 5.8; 95% CI, 1.5-22.8, respectively) in women with obesity. CONCLUSION: The use of RTLH may lower the risk of conversion rates and intraoperative bleeding in women who are obese compared with other modes of hysterectomy.