The Trend, Feasibility, and Safety of Salpingectomy as a form of Permanent Sterilization.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To assess the change in the rate of laparoscopic salpingectomy for sterilization after the release of the November 2013 Society of Gynecologic Oncology Clinical Practice Statement and the January 2015 American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Committee Opinion: Salpingectomy for Ovarian Cancer Prevention. We hypothesized there would be an increase in salpingectomy as a percentage of total laparoscopic sterilizations performed without an increase in complications when compared with conventional bilateral tubal ligation (BTL). DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Four university-affiliated hospitals in Houston, TX, and New York, NY. PATIENTS: All women 21 years or older who underwent interval laparoscopic permanent sterilization between April 2013 and September 2016. INTERVENTIONS: Sterilization by bilateral salpingectomy or conventional tubal ligation. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: There were 454 sterilization procedures identified; 60% were BTLs, whereas 40% were salpingectomies. The rate of use of salpingectomy significantly increased from 5% to 9% in 2013 to 2014 to 78% by 2016. There was no significant difference in intraoperative or postoperative complications or estimated blood loss. The mean procedure time was 54 minutes for salpingectomy compared with 45 minutes for BTL (p <.0001). Salpingectomy was more likely to require 3 ports compared with 2 ports for BTL (p <.0001). CONCLUSIONS: The Society of Gynecologic Oncology and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' support of salpingectomy for ovarian cancer prevention increased its use for sterilization. Based on this study, laparoscopic bilateral salpingectomy is a safe method of sterilization without an increase in perioperative risk compared with conventional tubal ligation. Physicians should incorporate these findings and implications when counseling patients regarding contraception and permanent sterilization.

Laparoscopy for the management of early-stage endometrial cancer: from experimental to standard of care.

We performed a search of PUBMED and MEDLINE for articles concerning surgical management of early stage endometrial cancer from 1950 to 2011. From the articles collected we extracted data such as estimated blood loss, operating room time, complications, conversion to laparotomy, and length of hospital stay. Forty-seven relevant sources were analyzed. The patients in the laparoscopy group had less blood loss, fewer complications, longer operating room times, and a shorter length of stay. Lymph node count was similar in both groups. Although obesity is not a contraindication to laparoscopy, it does lead to a higher conversion rate. Route of surgical treatment had no impact on recurrence or survival. Robotic surgery has significant advantages over laparotomy, but advantages over laparoscopy are not as distinct. Laparoscopic hysterectomy offers several advantages over laparotomy. These advantages relate to improvements in patient care with comparable clinical outcome. After careful analysis we believe laparoscopy should be the standard of care for surgical management of early stage endometrial cancer.

Robotic-assisted laparoscopic transection and repair of an obturator nerve during pelvic lymphadenectomy for endometrial cancer.

BACKGROUND: Obturator nerve injury may occur in gynecologic surgery, particularly in cases in which extensive pelvic sidewall retroperitoneal dissection is performed. The lack of tactile feedback from the robotic surgical system may contribute to obturator nerve injury. If surgical division occurs, microsurgical end-to-end anastomosis of the obturator nerve may be performed. CASE: A 76-year-old woman with stage IA endometrial adenocarcinoma sustained a left obturator nerve transection during pelvic lymphadenectomy that was recognized immediately. Robotic-assisted laparoscopic repair was performed successfully, with the patient experiencing no residual neuropathy 6 months postoperatively. CONCLUSION: Robotic-assisted laparoscopic repair is feasible for the treatment of obturator nerve injury.

Leiomyoma recurrent at the cervical stump: report of two cases.

Although supracervical hysterectomy is an increasingly popular modality for surgical management of benign uterine conditions data exploring all of its consequences are still forth coming. This case report will discuss the scenario of leiomyoma recurrence at the cervical stump after supracervical hysterectomy. After supracervical hysterectomy, the remnant cervix has the potential for leiomyoma formation. Surgeons performing supracervical hysterectomy should be aware of this possible outcome.

Robotic-assisted laparoscopic repair of a vesicouterine fistula.

BACKGROUND: As cesarean sections become a more common mode of delivery, they have become the most likely cause of vesicouterine fistula formation. The associated pathology with repeat cesarean deliveries may make repair of these fistulas difficult. Computer-enhanced telesurgery, also known as robotic-assisted surgery, offers a 3-dimensional view of the operative field and allows for intricate movements necessary for complex suturing and dissection. These qualities are advantageous in vesicouterine fistula repair. CASE: A healthy 34-year-old woman who underwent 4 cesarean deliveries presented with a persistent vesicouterine fistula. Conservative management with bladder decompression and amenorrhea-inducing agents failed. RESULTS: Robotic-assisted laparoscopic repair was successfully performed with the patient maintaining continence after surgery. CONCLUSION: Robotic-assisted laparoscopic repair of vesicouterine fistulas offers a minimally invasive approach to treatment of a complex disease process.