Anxiety and psychological aspects of hysterectomy-A prospective study

Background: Hysterectomy is one of the most commonly performed operative procedures and is associated not only with the stress of surgery, but is also associated with psychiatric illness like anxiety. Unfortunately, the currently available literature does not give a conclusive picture about the effect of hysterectomy on the psychological wellbeing of the woman. There is thus a need to study these factors, so that timely intervention could be planned for these subjects. Methods: Sixty subjects who underwent hysterectomy, in the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, were recruited for this study. The socio – demographic details of these patients were collected using a semi structured proforma, psychological distress was assessed using Life Distress Inventory (LDI) and psychiatric morbidities using Structured Clinical Interview For DSM-IV Axis –I Diagnosis (SCID-I). Results: In our study anxiety and psychological distress reduced in the post-operative assessment which was significant statistically. Majority of the subjects were married (86.7%) in the age group of 41-45 years, from lower middle class (93.3%) and were unemployed (55%). The most common reason for hysterectomy was uterine fibroid (38.3%) in our study. Conclusions: The main aim of the current study was to delineate the impact of hysterectomy on the psyche of the women who undergo the surgery. Hence an attempt was made to understand the psychological distress and psychiatric morbidity perceived by the women before and after undergoing hysterectomy. Patient would benefit from increased awareness on part medical professionals for pre-existing psychological morbidity in the preoperative period with timely intervention.