Objective: To compare the postoperative complication rates after hysterectomy between HIV-infected patients and HIV-uninfected patients.
Study design: We conducted a retrospective study of 24 human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients who underwent hysterectomy between January 1, 2000 and April 2, 2003 at Grady Memorial Hospital. Postoperative complications rates among HIV-infected women were compared to those rates among HIV-uninfected women. Data were analyzed t-tests for continuous variables and chi-squared tests for categorical variables.
Results: The HIV-infected women were more likely to report smoking and recreational drug use. In addition, a higher proportion of the HIV-infected women were co-infected with hepatitis, with more than one-quarter of HIV-infected women being hepatitis B or C seropositive. Although the study was limited due to small sample size, no significant differences in complication rates were found among HIV-infected women compared with uninfected women.
Conclusion: As HIV-infected women are living longer, healthier lives we anticipate that increased numbers of HIV-infected women will be undergoing hysterectomy for benign gynecologic conditions. It will be important, therefore, to carefully document any potential differences in operative risks.