TLH: Upcoming hysterectomy 4/9: overweight hoping for a laparoscopic

Hey Gals,
I found out on 3/24 I need a hysterectomy. About a month ago I started having some serious pain. I thought it was just really really bad cramps but the pain didn't let up. I have history of heavy periods 3 yrs ago I was told I had fibroids and my OBGYN recommended I get the Mirena IUD so I did and it was a godsend. but like I said i started having really bad pain to top it off my OBGYN doesn't take my current insurance so I had to find a new doc. Did an ultrasound last week and I have 7 fibroids. I met with my surgeon on Tues. he thinks one of the fibroids is dying and that is what is causing my pain. It is so intense I have to take pain meds to make it to work. Anyway, he recommend a hysterectomy and I'm praying he can do it laparoscopically. he is going to try that approach first. I am 39 so he is leaving my ovaries so I won't have to worry about HRT.
I am significantly overweight worried laparscopic approach wont be successful and I have to be cut wide open. Those of you who are overweight were you able to have a TLH? just glad he is willing to give it a try. I'm just super nervous about the whole thing and wish there was another way to resolve the pain
Thanks for listening,
The Kermit *

Welcome, The Kermit! I haven't had my surgery yet; scheduled for 4/1. I am about 60 pounds overweight and scheduled for the daVinci robotic surgery. At my pre-op visit, I asked my doctor as she pushing around on my stomach if she was sure she could do the surgery through all that extra stomach! She just grinned and said "No problem at all," or something like that! There is always a possibility that a lap-type surgery will turn into an abdominal one once surgery starts, but I got the feeling from my doc if that happened with me it would not be because of my weight, but finding a larger-than-expected uterus, a lot of scar tissue, etc.

My surgery won't be from fibroids, but due to pre-cancerous cells found on one of two polyps they removed during a D&C last month, so I can't speak to if the size of the fibroids might cause the surgery to turn abdominal.

Hang in there, Kermit!

Welcome Kermit

I know you would prefer the least invasive type of surgery, we all would of course, so I can certainly understand your hope. But please be open to the fact the surgeon will need to do whatever type is best for you. Sometimes they see new conditions and/or developments while operating that your test results did not conclusively show, so they may need to adapt and adjust the surgery.

The most important thing for you is to have a safe surgery

You mentioned being overweight, so here is a link to an article you might find interesting:

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR OVERWEIGHT SISTERS

We wish you the very best of luck and please know you are not alone and we are here to support you.

I just found an article on a government site from the Journal of the Society of Laparoendoscopic Surgeons entitled "Robotic Hysterectomy Strategies in the Morbidly Obese Patient." Here's the conclusion paragraph:

"Robotic-assisted total laparoscopic hysterectomy can be a safe and effective method of performing hysterectomies in select morbidly obese patients, allowing them the opportunity to undergo minimally invasive surgery without increased perioperative complications."

I know you aren't having the robotic-type surgery, but I thought it might help put your mind at ease.

The best type of surgery is the one the doctor feels is best for the patient and that he/she feel comfortable doing.

I too am overweight. I had full abdominal hysterectomy due to size of my fibroid. Even overweight doc could still do lap. Whatever you and doc decide is what's best for you!

Hi Kermit! My daVinci is scheduled for 4/7, so just 2 days before yours. I'm about 70 lbs overweight, and my weight was not even discussed at my GYN-Oncology consult. The article which Pam57 referred to was very interesting and insiteful. So it seems that while being overweight (or even morbidly obese) may not present any unusual challenge in having a laparoscopic/daVinci, there could always be the possibility of having to convert to an open incision. I'm hoping that when I wake up, I will not feel the intense pain of a vertical incision, but keeping the thought of it in the back of my mind that it could be a possible outcome for whatever reason.

Anyway, best of luck to you! This is my first post here, although I've been lurking for a few weeks since getting my uterine cancer (grade 2) diagnosis. Lots to read up on for sure!

I am overweight. I am 5'9" and weigh 193 lbs., clothes size 14/16. I am overweight, not obese, but would need to lose about 30lbs to have a bmi in the "normal" range. I had divinci surgery, and had a complicated surgery (it ended up taking nearly 5 hrs) but my surgeon was great and did not have to convert to open abdominal, although at one point he would have liked to! I had one fibroid the size and shape of a pineapple besides several others of significant (ranging from 3cm to 8cm) size. And my uterus had to be peeled off my bladder. I am doing well now although I had several uti's after surgery and then got yeast infections from the antibiotics. But now 5 months out I am doing well. I also asked before surgery if my size would be an issue, and he said he had done successful davincis on women that weighed 100 lbs more than I. So I would not be too concerned about the surgery itself. Afterward, however, I have been told that prolapse happens more frequently in overweight patients so I am actively trying to drop 20 lbs now because I don't want to have to have another surgery! Wishing you a successful procedure and all the beys to you!!'

Thanks Ladies for your support and the resources. I have confidence that my surgeon will do what's best for me and at this point I JUST WANT IT OUT!!!!!!!!! pain day in an day out is very wearing I'm trying to work until surgery because I only have 6 wks of FMLA left I had surgery 5 months ago for an unrelated issue so when I found out I needed surgery again I was like you gotta be kidding me 11 more days to go

I am about 100 pounds overweight and I was able to have the da Vinci hyster without a single complication. I knew going in that my Dr would do whatever he needed to do the surgery safely, whether that be da Vinci or an open incision. Best of luck to you.

At 5'9" and 230 lbs, I had a LAVH, leaving 1 ovary in place on 3/26. I lost less than an ounce of blood. My surgeon said that it was an absolute success. This was the 6 th laparoscopic surgery that I have had in 10 years.

Size is not a problem.