LAVH: Upcoming hysterectomy (LAVH): Difference in hospital stay length

Hospital stays vary with country. Women in the States seem to have shorter stays for any given procedure.

As for can you leave earlier, I was told to expect a 3-4 day stay after abdominal surgery. My first day after surgery I was completely wiped out, but my second day I was walking laps around the wards and sitting upright in an armchair reading. My surgeon said it was up to me: I could go home the next day (Day 3) or stay an extra night and leave on Day 4. I opted to leave on Day 3, and that worked out well for me.

You mentioned kids at home. If they're young kids and you're going to be having to care for them, I'd honestly suggest staying in the hospital as long as you can for the sake of getting as much rest as you can.

Thanks ladies, mine is private and he's said the two nights. Not sure if being home with the kids will be more relaxing or not!

Hi, I'm in the U.S. and I had to have a TAH due to endometriosis. I did keep ovaries. I was scheduled for a two night stay but stayed another day because I wasn't ready to come home. Don't rush to get home if insurance pays for it. You will have no energy, and you will need rest. I hope you will have plenty of help from family because you will need it. Best of luck to you!

I think that in the U.S, they tend to go towards shorter stays than other countries, partly because of insurance, and partly to minimize chances for infection, etc. I myself am a proponent of getting out asap if you are doing well. I stayed one night after my TAH, but would have gone home if they had let me!

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Originally Posted by coughy16 I think that in the U.S, they tend to go towards shorter stays than other countries, partly because of insurance, and partly to minimize chances for infection, etc...

I love my health care system. It's certainly come through for me in the past two years, when I've had cataract surgery, cancer and a cancer recurrence.

However, we certainly tend to have a bit of a problem with hospital bed shortages. I think this might encourage hospitals to keep patients long enough to ensure that there aren't going to be any immediate complications from surgery. It's easier to keep a patient in the bed they've already got than to try and find them a new bed if they have to be readmitted after being sent home.

Also, I live alone, so I was quite happy to stay until I was confident of being able to take care of myself. I know that in my "exit interview" the doc who was signing off on my release asked about my home conditions. She seemed satisfied when I told her I'd made an arrangement with my upstairs neighbour to call if I needed help. But the fact that she even asked makes me wonder what would have happened if I'd replied that I lived alone out in the country down ten miles of dirt road. I suspect the doc would have tried to persuade me to stay an extra day - and to be honest, she would have been right to do so.

I had a LAVH (U.S.) and I left 3 hours after my 4 hour surgery. I did great. I must say I did push myself a little bit due to my family situation. Plus, we can't really control how fast we urinate after and I was fortunate to go 1 1/2 hours after I woke up. I know some ladies have trouble and you have to go before you go home.

I had a general and don't remember the ride home or going to my bed. I just remember off and on of that first day.

I also put a cheap potty chair next to my bed for the first night. I went a lot and did not want to wake up someone to help me.

So it's very doable to come home that day, but make sure you have your ducks in a row first.

Good luck!