Less pain after hysterectomy with vessel sealing

(HealthDay)—An electrosurgical bipolar vessel sealing procedure during vaginal hysterectomy leads to less pain during the evening after surgery and shorter operating time than conventional clamping and suturing, according to research published online Aug. 24 in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Mariëlle M.E. Lakeman, M.D., of the Academic Medical Centre in Amsterdam, and colleagues conducted a randomized, controlled trial involving 100 women who underwent an electrosurgical bipolar vessel sealing procedure or conventional clamping and suturing procedure during vaginal hysterectomy.

The researchers found that the women in the vessel-sealing group had significantly less pain the evening following surgery, compared with the conventional surgery patients. After the first night, however, pain scores were not significantly different between groups. The vessel sealing procedure was approximately 11 minutes shorter, but neither blood loss nor length of hospital stay was different. Changes in micturition and defecation symptoms were not affected by surgical method. Procedure costs were not significantly different.

"Surgery seems to be faster using vessel sealing," the authors write. "However, the shorter operation duration does not completely compensate for the costs of the Ligasure clamp. Patients may benefit from the use of a vessel-sealing technique because the postoperative pain during the first night after surgery is less."

Several authors disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical and biomedical companies, including Covidien, which funded the study.

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