A seven-year review of emergency obstetric hysterectomy in a Nigerian tertiary institution

ABSTRACT

Background:Extirpativeuterinesurgeries for near-miss events are usually thelast resort when other conservative measures fail.Emergency obstetric hysterectomy(EOH)may still have a significant role where there are limited options.Objectives:To determine the prevalenceof EOH, theassociatedfactorsandthe foeto-maternal outcomeat the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria.Methods:This was a retrospective observational study covering sevenyears (January 2010 to December 2016). The case records of patients who hadEOH during this period were retrieved for data extraction. Results:There were 5,608 deliveries and 31 cases requiringEOH giving aprevalence rateof31/5,608(0.55%). The mean age of the patients was 30.3±4.2years, whilethe mean gestational age at delivery was 36.3±5.1 weeks. Most of thepatients16/25(64.0%) were of higher parity (>3), and12/25(48%)of the patients were within the age bracket of 25-34 years. Subtotal hysterectomywas the most common procedure(18; 72.0%), andruptured uterus wasthe main indication for EOH (40.0%). The twomost common interventions that were critical to survival includedmassive blood transfusion (24.0%)andIntensive Care Unit admission (20%).Two (8%)maternal deathsand 58.3% perinatal mortality wererecorded.Conclusion:EOH is still relatively frequently performedat this centredue tothehigh incidence of a ruptured uterus. Effortsshould be made to increase the proportion of deliveries attended by skilled personnel and improvethe capacity of lower levelhospitals for comprehensive emergency obstetric care