RT Journal
A1 Roeske NA
T1 HYsterectomy and the quality of a woman's life
JF Archives of Internal Medicine
JO Archives of Internal Medicine
YR 1979
FD February 1
VO 139
IS 2
SP 146
OP 147
DO 10.1001/archinte.1979.03630390012008
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinte.1979.03630390012008
AB Hysterectomy is the most commonly performed major surgery in the United States (800,000 per year). The number of hysterectomies has been increasing annually in the United States. If this situation continues in the future, it will result in loss of the uterus by more than half the female population by the age of 65 years. The hysterectomy rate in the United States is proportionately twice that of England and Wales.1 These data have stimulated discussion from many sectors of American society regarding the necessity for this treatment. Nevertheless, most women still depend on their primary care physician for referral to a surgeon. Therefore, this physician has a critical role in determining the physical necessity for the hysterectomy and the possibility of the surgery improving the quality of the woman's life.The Executive Board of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology has recently issued a policy statement that gives