Diagnosis of adverse events after hysterectomy with postoperative self-care web applications: A pilot study.

Increased pressures from multiple sources are leading to earlier patient discharge following surgery. Our objective was to test the feasibility of self-care web applications to inform women if, when, and where to seek help for symptoms after hysterectomy. We asked 31 women recovering at home after hysterectomy at two centers to sign into a website on a schedule. For each session, the website informed them about normal postoperative symptoms and prompted them to complete an interactive symptom questionnaire that provided detailed information on flagged responses. We interviewed eight women who experienced an adverse event. Six of these women had used the web application regularly, each indicating they used the information to guide them in seeking care for their complications. These data support that self-care applications may empower patients to manage their own care and present to appropriate health care providers and venues when they experience abnormal symptoms.

Cartilaginous symphysis pubis cysts: report of two cases, technique for removal, and review of the literature.

Cartilaginous symphysis pubis cysts are rare. There are 7 cases previously reported in the literature. Patients are commonly asymptomatic or may present with a slow-growing, painless vulvar mass, voiding difficulty, and/or dyspareunia. Two cases were managed at our center over 5 years. We present these 2 cases, a surgical technique for removal, a summary of all reported cases, and some perspectives on the pathophysiologic mechanisms for the origin of this lesion.

Minimizing the urological and psychological morbidity of urinary tract fistulae from VBAC.

BACKGROUND: Because of the relative rarity of the condition, there is no consensus for the timing of surgical repair of fistulae following vaginal birth after Caesarean section (VBAC). CASES: Three cases of urinary tract fistulae following VBAC are presented. Two patients had an early repair (24-48 hours after delivery), and the third had a repair at four months after delivery. The surgical approach and intraoperative findings for the early and late repairs are described, and the psychological effects of early and late repair are compared. The early repairs were not technically difficult and were associated with less psychological morbidity. CONCLUSION: In the absence of contraindications, early repair of urinary tract fistulae diagnosed within the first few days after VBAC delivery is preferred. If early repair is attempted, perioperative conditions must be optimized; urogynaecologic or urologic expertise and assistance should be considered.

Disability and litigation from urinary tract injuries at benign gynecologic surgery in Canada.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of urinary tract injury and the relative risk of litigation from an injury for benign gynecologic surgery in Canada and to analyze a subset of cases of litigation, determining independent risk factors that predicted medical and legal outcomes. METHODS: The prevalence of urinary tract injury and the relative risks of litigation from an injury were determined from the national hospital discharge abstract and the national physician malpractice databases. Multiple logistic regression was performed on a subset of litigation cases. RESULTS: The prevalence of urinary tract injury at benign gynecologic surgery was low (0.33%). If a patient sustained a urinary tract injury, there was a high relative risk of litigation (relative risk 91, 95% confidence interval [CI] 55-158). Patients had a higher chance of major disability after urinary tract injury from hysterectomy for abnormal uterine bleeding (odds ratio [OR] 6.16, 95% CI 1.13-39.01, P = .04), but a lower chance of this being a permanent disability (OR 0.23, 95% CI 0.05-0.96, P = .05). Permanent disability was more likely after an obstructed ureter compared with other types of urinary tract injuries (OR 4.54, 95% CI 1.55-14.88, P = .008). Only 18% of the injuries were recognized intraoperatively. An acute bladder injury was more likely to be recognized intraoperatively than other types of injury (OR 14.98, 95% CI 3.89-57.74, P < .001). No obstructed ureters or urinary tract fistulae were recognized intraoperatively. CONCLUSION: Urinary tract injuries are an uncommon but significant complication from benign gynecologic surgery. Such injuries are associated a high relative risk of litigation.

Postpartum flatal and Fecal Incontinence Quality-of-Life Scale: a disease- and population-specific measure.

Using various recruiting methods, the authors identified 10 women who suffer from flatal and/or fecal incontinence subsequent to one or more previous vaginal deliveries. Each of these women participated in an individual in-depth 1-hour interview assessing symptom frequency, severity, and impact on quality of life. Participants also completed the Fecal Incontinence Quality-of-Life Scale and evaluated how well this scale captured their experiences. The authors used qualitative analyses to generate themes from the interviews and modified the existing scale, adding new items and themes to capture this population's particular symptom experience. This scale is being evaluated in the context of a surgical clinical trial comparing two techniques for repairing anal sphincter lacerations from delivery.