Abdominal hysterectomy: a comparison between the use of surgical staples and conventional sutures for the major pedicles

Objective

To compare the progress of patients undergoing abdominal hysterectomy using either surgical staples or conventional sutures for the ovarian and uterine pedicles.

Design

A prospective randomized controlled study.

Setting

A teaching hospital gynaecology unit.

Subjects

24 women presenting for abdominal hysterectomy.

Interventions

Routine abdominal hysterectomy was undertaken. Uterine and ovarian pedicles were either ligated conventionally or secured by surgical staples.

Main outcome measures

These were: duration of operation, blood loss, length of hospital stay and recovery parameters.

Results

There were no difficulties in applying the staples in this pilot study and there was no difference in the outcomes between the two methods.

Conclusions

Although the use of surgical staples is an attractive principle, this pilot study could not demonstrate an advantage to justify the cost. Further evaluation may be indicated.