Hysterectomy: Exploring Your Options, The Information You Need for the Decisions You Face (A Johns Hopkins Press Health Book)

Hysterectomy is the second most common major surgical procedure performed on women in the United States. For some women, the decision to have a hysterectomy is an easy one; for others, it is a difficult choice associated with concerns about risks, discomfort, and female identity. Yet many disorders of the uterus--fibroid tumors, uterine and cervical cancer, pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis, adenomyosis, and uterine prolapse--may require surgical treatment. In this thoroughly updated edition of Hysterectomy: Exploring Your Options , gynecologists Edward E. Wallach, Esther Eisenberg, Isabel Green, and Stacey A. Scheib describe and explain every aspect of the procedure, including: - Symptoms of gynecological disorders that may require uterine fibroid removal or hysterectomy - The full range of diagnostic and therapeutic imaging techniques, including MRI-focused ultrasound - Thorough explanations of specific alternative measures that may be used to avoid the need for hysterectomy - The various techniques for hysterectomy, including single-incision surgery and robotic hysterectomy - How to prepare for surgery and what to expect while in the hospital - Details on the surgery and postoperative recovery, including information about pain medications, when to resume daily activities, how sexual function may be affected, future reproductive possibilities, and the benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy Included in this compassionate, comprehensive guide to treatment and recovery for women having--or deciding whether to have--a hysterectomy are stories of women whose own experiences with hysterectomy offer useful advice for anyone considering the procedure.

Hysterectomy is the second most common major surgical procedure performed on women in the United States. For some women, the decision to have a hysterectomy is an easy one; for others, it is a difficult choice associated with concerns about risks, discomfort, and female identity. Yet many disorders of the uterus—fibroid tumors, uterine and cervical cancer, pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis, adenomyosis, and uterine prolapse—may require surgical treatment.

In this thoroughly updated edition of Hysterectomy: Exploring Your Options, gynecologists Edward E. Wallach, Esther Eisenberg, Isabel Green, and Stacey A. Scheib describe and explain every aspect of the procedure, including:

• Symptoms of gynecological disorders that may require uterine fibroid removal or hysterectomy
• The full range of diagnostic and therapeutic imaging techniques, including MRI-focused ultrasound
• Thorough explanations of specific alternative measures that may be used to avoid the need for hysterectomy
• The various techniques for hysterectomy, including single-incision surgery and robotic hysterectomy
• How to prepare for surgery and what to expect while in the hospital
• Details on the surgery and postoperative recovery, including information about pain medications, when to resume daily activities, how sexual function may be affected, future reproductive possibilities, and the benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy

Included in this compassionate, comprehensive guide to treatment and recovery for women having—or deciding whether to have—a hysterectomy are stories of women whose own experiences with hysterectomy offer useful advice for anyone considering the procedure.

Hysterectomy is the second most common major surgical procedure performed on women in the United States. For some women, the decision to have a hysterectomy is an easy one; for others, it is a difficult choice associated with concerns about risks, discomfort, and female identity. Yet many disorders of the uterus-fibroid tumors, uterine and cervical cancer, pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis, adenomyosis, and uterine prolapse-may require surgical treatment. In this thoroughly updated edition of Hysterectomy: Exploring Your Options, gynecologists Edward E. Wallach, Esther Eisenberg, Isabel Green, and Stacey A. Scheib describe and explain every aspect of the procedure, including, Symptoms of gynecological disorders that may require uterine fibroid removal or hysterectomy; the full range of diagnostic and therapeutic imaging techniques, including MRI-focused ultrasound; thorough explanations of specific alternative measures that may be used to avoid the need for hysterectomy; the various techniques for hysterectomy, including single-incision surgery and robotic hysterectomy; how to prepare for surgery and what to expect while in the hospital; details on the surgery and postoperative recovery, including information about pain medications, when to resume daily activities, how sexual function may be affected, future reproductive possibilities, and the benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy. Included in this compassionate, comprehensive guide to treatment and recovery for women having - or deciding whether to have - a hysterectomy are stories of women whose own experiences with hysterectomy offer useful advice for anyone considering the procedure In this thoroughly updated edition of Hysterectomy: Exploring Your Options, gynecologists Edward E. Wallach, Esther Eisenberg, Isabel Green, and Stacey A. Scheib describe and explain every aspect of the procedure, including ʺ Symptoms of gynecological disorders that may require uterine fibroid removal or hysterectomyʺ The full range of diagnostic and therapeutic imaging techniques, including MRI-focused ultrasoundʺ Thorough explanations of specific alternative measures that may be used to avoid the need for hysterectomyʺ The various techniques for hysterectomy, including single-incision surgery and robotic hysterectomyʺ How to prepare for surgery and what to expect while in the hospitalʺ Details on the surgery and postoperative recovery, including information about pain medications, when to resume daily activities, how sexual function may be affected, future reproductive possibilities, and the benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy Cover Page Title Page Copyright Page Contents Preface: Who We Are and Why We Wrote This Book Acknowledgments Introduction: What Is Hysterectomy and What Is the Debate? PART ONE About the Female Reproductive Organs 1 Anatomy and Physiology of the Uterus 2 Looking at the Uterus: Imaging and Diagnosis PART TWO What Can Go Wrong? 3 Uterine Fibroids 4 Endometriosis 5 Uterine Prolapse and Related Problems 6 Abnormal Uterine Bleeding 7 Pelvic Pain, Infection, and Adhesions 8 Cancer PART THREE Surgery 9 What You Need to Know to Prepare for a Hysterectomy 10 What Happens in the Hospital 11 What Kind of Hysterectomy Should You Have? PART FOUR After Hysterectomy 12 Sexual and Reproductive Issues 13 Hormone Replacement Therapy Conclusion Index Footnotes 2 Looking at the Uterus: Imaging and Diagnosis 8 Cancer Conclusion Hysterectomy is the second most common major surgical procedure performed on women in the United States. This book describes and explains every aspect of the procedure, including, Symptoms of gynecological disorders that may require uterine fibroid removal or hysterectomy; and the full range of diagnostic and therapeutic imaging techniques.