Timing of urinary catheter removal after radical hysterectomy for cancer of the cervix and uterus: A single-institution observational study / Philippine Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology

ABSTRACT

Background and Objective@#Radical hysterectomy remains to be the first surgery for early‑stage cervical and selected stage 2 endometrial carcinoma. Functional disorders of the lower urinary tract are the foremost common complications following radical surgery necessitating catheterization. This study was undertaken to determine the number of postoperative days (POD) of the removal of urinary catheters after hysterectomy and assess the practicability of earlier removal of the catheter without compromising the bladder function@*Methodology@#A descriptive observational study of patients who underwent Type 2 or 3 hysterectomy for cervical or endometrial carcinoma. Clinical, intraoperative, and anesthesia records and results of the histopathologic reports of every patient were reviewed. Demographic, clinical, and histopathologic data needed during this review were recorded. Descriptive statistics were used.@*Results@#Between January 2016 and December 2019, a complete 45 patients underwent radical hysterectomy (43 patients for cervical cancer and a pair for endometrial carcinoma), with a median age of 50 years. The mean operative time is 2.5 h and also the average blood loss is 500 ml. The mean size of the cervical tumor was 2.2 cm, the mean length of the vagina was 2.5 cm, and the mean lateral width of parametria was 3.6 cm. Catheters were removed between the 3rd and 20th (mean = 6 days) POD. All patients had adequate spontaneous void within 6 h after removal. Five patients had their catheters removed beyond 7 days, 3 patients between POD 8 and POD 14, and 2 patients between days POD 15 and POD 20. All patients were able to return to bladder function within 3 weeks of catheterization.@*Conclusion@#The outcome showed that earlier removal of catheter seems to be a practical and safe option compared to long‑term catheterization for patients who underwent radical hysterectomy without causing morbidities