Added: 01/09/2007 |
How a Female Views the Hysterectomy ProcedureEvery woman who needs a hysterectomy procedure should hear about the post-operative activities performed by one hysterectomy patient. In June of 1969 she joined a group of Girl Scouts as they hiked over a part of the Appalachian Trail. She had worried about her inability to keep up with the others, and yet she usually found herself able to stay close to the front of the line. Her preparatory hikes certainly helped her to get back in shape.
The standard hysterectomy procedure involves the surgical removal of the uterus. A variety of different medical conditions can create a need for a hysterectomy. Removal of the uterus can be ordered as a treatment for uterine fibroids, endometriosis, a prolapsed uterus, certain cancers of the female reproductive tract, or a heavy growth in the uterine lining.
A woman who agrees to a hysterectomy procedure should realize that she will suffer the problems associated with menopause. If she is not yet in her late forties, she will no doubt have an early menopause. She will need to deal with the health hazards that are associated with menopause.
One of the most serious health hazards associated with menopause is an increased risk of heart problems. That hazard arises from the fact that the hysterectomy procedure removes from the body a woman’s source of estrogen. When a woman’s circulatory system receives that estrogen, then her arteries remain supple.
Yet those supple arteries are not the only benefit that a woman derives from production of estrogen, a function of the uterus. Estrogen also serves to prevent blood clots. In addition, estrogen aids creation in the bloodstream of a generous amount of beneficial high density lipoproteins (HDL). By the same token, estrogen causes a decrease in the amount of low density lipoproteins (LDL).
When menopause causes the loss of estrogen, a woman’s heart becomes as much at risk for heart problems as a man’s heart. Those risks include clots, lower HDL, higher LDL and one further risk factor. That is the likely appearance in her bloodstream of plaque, a condition called arteriosclerosis.
The hysterectomy procedure can also put a woman’s bones at risk. During the first five years of menopause, a woman’s rate of bone loss accelerates to a rate between 2% and 5% greater than what it was before the same woman entered menopause. Women who are most apt to encounter problems are those with small bones, smokers and women with a family history of bone problems.
For many women the very nature of the hysterectomy procedure causes fear, regardless of the potential risks. That is why surgeons often promise to use a laparoscopic or vaginal hysterectomy. Such procedures offer the benefit of minimal scarring. Yet the laparoscopic and vaginal hysterectomy can not always be a workable option.
In certain emergency situations, the hysterectomy must be performed as part of a late term abortion. It is sometimes used to save the life of a pregnant woman, although it can increase the risk of spontaneous abortion or premature labor in a subsequent pregnancy.
Such procedures have also come under attack from politicians in the United States. Those legislators and leaders object to all types of abortion, including an abortion performed in an emergency situation.
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