Background: Vaginal hysterectomy (VH) and colpocleisis are both used for the treatment of advanced pelvic organ prolapse (POP).
Objective: To compare short- and long-term outcomes of vaginal hysterectomy vs. colpocleisis for advanced POP.
Methods: Hospital and outpatient charts of patients who underwent VH or colpocleisis at our institution between January 2006 and December 2015 were reviewed. Clinical data were obtained and analyzed.
Results: In this study, 188 patients underwent VH and 32 patients underwent colpocleisis. The colpocleisis group was significantly older than the VH group (79.5 ± 4.5 vs. 69 ± 6.1 years respectively, P < 0.0001) and presented with significantly higher co-morbidity rates and a higher degree of POP. Perioperative blood loss was significantly lower (250 ± 7.6 ml vs. 300 ± 115 ml, P < 0.0001) and postoperative hospitalization was significantly shorter (2 ± 2.7 vs. 3 ± 2.2 days, P = 0.015) among the colpocleisis group. None of the patients from the colpocleisis group required an indwelling urethral catheter after discharge, compared to 27.5% of the patients from the VH group (P = 0.001). Total postoperative complication rate was significantly lower among the colpocleisis group (25% vs. 31% P < 0.0001). Objective recurrence of POP was significantly more common among the VH group (7% vs. 0% and 21% vs. 0% for the anterior and posterior compartments, respectively, P = 0.04).
Conclusions: Colpocleisis is associated with faster recovery, lower perioperative morbidity, and higher success rates than VH and should be considered for frail and elderly patients.