WOMEN receiving hysterectomies at a Merseyside hospital are among the first in the country to benefit from a procedure which reduces recovery time by more than a third.
The keyhole technique is being performed at Arrowe Park Hospital, in Wirral, and means patients can be discharged within 24 hours.
It is the first hospital in the North West and among only two others in the country to offer this new type of operation to women.
Traditionally, the operation can result in a long hospital stay and can have side effects but the new technique reduces complications.
Around 40,000 women a year undergo a hysterectomy at an NHS hospital in Britain, meaning that one in five of all women will have the operation at some point in their lives.
Theresa Klein, from Eastham, is living proof that the operation not only works but has improved her quality of life.
At the age of just 41, the mother of three was suffering pain, discomfort and bloating for weeks at a time and a hysterectomy was offered as a solution.
She said: “You hear all sorts of worrying stories about hysterectomies, but I can highly recommend this new procedure.
“I left hospital 24 hours after the operation – although I could have gone home the same day, had I wished – and I felt great.
“I had three tiny incisions, there was very little pain afterwards, and I felt like I could do anything, although I did take it easy for a while.”
Consultants at Arrowe Park Hospital have so far performed the operation on 16 local women and the results have been positive.
Although trained in the technique by colleagues in London, local surgeons say this pioneering procedure remains unavailable to women living in most other areas of the country.
Consultant gynaecologist Mark Doyle said: “Traditional surgery involves a large cut to the abdomen and the womb and cervix being removed. We now make a much smaller incision, removing only the part of the womb that bleeds and leaving the cervix behind.”
Patients would usually spend about five days in hospital followed by a three to four-month recovery period. The new treatment reduces the time spent in hospital to a maximum of 24 hours and recovery takes between two and four weeks. However, it is unsuitable for women with abnormal cervical smears.
Mr Doyle added: “It is not terribly difficult to perform, and around 50% of women in need of a hysterectomy could benefit from the new technique.
“The equipment needed to perform the operation is more expensive, but that is being offset by the reduction in the time patients spend in hospital.”
So far, 450 women in the London area have undergone the procedure, and it is also available at a centre in Hull.
