Is previous cesarean section a risk for incidental cystotomy at the time of hysterectomy?: A case-controlled study

Objective The purpose of this study was to determine if previous cesarean section is an independent risk factor for incidental cystotomy at the time of hysterectomy. Study design This is a case-controlled study that evaluated all cases of incidental cystotomy at the time of hysterectomy between January 1998 and December 2001. Five thousand and ninety-two hysterectomies were performed in the time period mentioned above, and 51 cases of incidental cystotomy were identified. Each case of incidental cystotomy was then matched to 3 controls with similar patient characteristics, medical histories, and surgical histories, as well as the absence of incidental cystotomy at the time of hysterectomy. Results Overall, 5092 hysterectomies were performed during the study period (total abdominal hysterectomy [TAH] 3140 [61.7%], total vaginal hysterectomy [TVH] 1519 [29.8%], laparoscopically-assisted vaginal hysterectomy [LAVH] 433 [8.5%]). Fifty-one cases of incidental cystotomy were identified (TAH: 24 [47.1%], TVH: 19 [37.3%], LAVH: 8 [15.7%]). The overall incidence of cystotomy was 1.0%. When considering TAH, there were 24/3141 (0.76%) cases of incidental cystotomy, with 8 (33%) of these patients with a history of previous cesarean section. During TVH, we encountered 19/1519 (1.3%) cases of incidental cystotomy, with 4 (21%) of these women having undergone a previous cesarean. Finally, during LAVH, there were 8/433 (1.8%) cases of incidental cystotomy. Five (62.5%) of these patients had a previous history of cesarean section. In comparison, 19/72 (26.4%) TAH controls had a previous history of cesarean. Four out of 57 (7.0%) TVH controls had a history of cesarean section. Finally, 2/24 (8.3%) LAVH controls had a history of previous cesarean. Conclusion Previous cesarean section is indeed a significant risk factor for damage to the lower urinary tract at the time of hysterectomy (odds ratio [OR] 2.04; 95%CI 1.2-3.5). When analyzed separately, the OR of incidental cystotomy at the time of TAH, TVH, and LAVH in a woman with a history of previous cesarean was 1.26, 3.00, and 7.50, respectively. Only the value for LAVH was statistically significant (P = .005; 95%CI 1.8-31.4).