Abdominal hysterectomy practice patterns in the United States.

Objective: To describe nationwide practice trends for two principal techniques of abdominal hysterectomy in the United States, numbers and rates of total (TAH) and supracervical (SCH) hysterectomy were reviewed with charges for each operation.

Methods: Practice patterns for all inpatient TAH and SCH discharges in the US from 1991 to 1994 were studied using HCUP-3 NIS, a nationwide hospital discharge database. Hysterectomies performed for malignant disease, vaginally or with laparoscopic assistance were not sampled. For each year studied, the number and rate of TAH and SCH, average length of stay (LOS), and mean institutional charge were evaluated.

Results: From 1991 to 1994, the US TAH rate (cases/10000 females) decreased significantly from 25.7 to 20.5 (P = 0.02). During the same interval the SCH rate increased significantly from 0.16 to 0.41 (P = 0.04). Nevertheless, TAH accounted for > 99% of all abdominal hysterectomies for each of the 4 years evaluated. The mean institutional charges for the two operations generally depicted SCH to be more costly than TAH.

Conclusion: The national rates of TAH and SCH rates changed significantly in the United States from 1991 to 1994, with TAH declining and SCH increasing. This mix of cases continues to reflect a strong preference for TAH. Although hospital charges for both procedures increased during this study, these data show that SCH is more expensive than TAH. The much lower utilization of SCH renders nominal its impact on national healthcare expenditures, however. Further studies are needed to assess specific causative factors for these changes in US hysterectomy technique.