Elsevier

The Lancet

Volume 349, Issue 9056, 29 March 1997, Pages 897-901
The Lancet

Articles
Medical Research Council randomised trial of endometrial resection versus hysterectomy in management of menorrhagia

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(96)07285-6Get rights and content

Summary

Background

The most frequent indication for hysterectomy is menorrhagia, even though the uterus is normal in a large number of patients. Transcervical resection of the endometrium (TCRE) is a less drastic alternative, but success rates have varied and menorrhagia can recur. We have tested the hypothesis that the difference in the proportion of women dissatisfied and requiring further surgery within 3 years of TCRE or hysterectomy would be no more than 15%.

Methods

202 women with symptomatic menorrhagia were recruited to a multicentre, randomised, controlled trial to compare the two interventions. TCRE and hysterectomy were randomly assigned in a ratio of two to one. The primary endpoints were women's satisfaction and need for further surgery. The patients' psychological and social states were monitored before surgery, then annually with a questionnaire. Analysis was by intention to treat.

Findings

Data were available for 172 women (56 hysterectomy, 116 TCRE); 26 withdrew before surgery and four were lost to follow-up. Satisfaction scores were higher for hysterectomy than for TCRE throughout follow-up (median 2 years), but the differences were not significant (at 3 years 27 [96%] of 28 in hysterectomy group vs 46 [85%] of 54 in TCRE group were satisfied; p=0·16). 25 (22%) women in the TCRE group and five (9%) in the hysterectomy group required further surgery (relative risk 0·46 [95% Cl 0·2-1·1], p=0·053). TCRE had the benefits of shorter operating time, fewer complications, and faster rates of recovery.

Interpretation

TCRE is an acceptable alternative to hysterectomy in the treatment of menorrhagia for many women with no other serious disorders.

Introduction

Endometrial ablation with electrosurgery, laser, or other forms of thermal energy has been introduced as a less invasive alternative to hysterectomy in the management of abnormal uterine bleeding of benign aetiology.1 Medical treatment of menorrhagia is often ineffective. Hysterectomy is the most common major surgical procedure among women during their reproductive lives.2

Initial studies of endometrial ablation showed high success rates with substantial alleviation of menstrual symptoms and avoidance of hysterectomy in most patients.3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Later, large-scale surveys were less favourable; success rates fell as the number of participating centres increased.9, 10 The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in London, for example, reported on more than 10 000 procedures done during an 18-month period.9 The discrepancies in outcome can, to some extent, be explained by differences in patient selection, operator experience, ablative techniques, and length of follow-up.11

Three prospective, randomised trials have compared the short-term outcome of transcervical resection of the endometrium (TCRE) or laser endometrial ablation with abdominal hysterectomy. All concluded that hysteroscopic surgery is associated with a shorter operating time, fewer operative and postoperative complications, lower analgesic requirements, and faster return to normal activity and work.12, 13, 14 These advantages added up to large financial savings.12, 15 Treatment failure can, however, occur after conservative surgery. Apart from possible adverse physical and psychological effects, initial financial savings could be eroded by a greater use of primary-health-care services and specialist treatment, including further surgery.

Based on our long-term clinical experience of TCRE6 and published data about hysterectomy,16 we carried out a multicentre, randomised, prospective trial to test the hypothesis that the proportion of patients dissatisfied and requiring further gynaecological surgery within 3 years of endoscopic management would be no more than 15% greater than the proportion after hysterectomy.

Section snippets

Selection of patients and randomisation

Women who had symptomatic menorrhagia that required hysterectomy and who fulfiled the entry criteria for the study were invited to participate. Eligible women were aged 30-50; had decided to have no more children; had regular menstrual cycles of between 21 and 35 days, with each period lasting for less than 50% of the cycle; and had documented evidence of normal endometrial histology within the previous 12 months and normal cervical smear within the previous 3 years. Exclusion criteria were:

Results

202 women were recruited to the study, which represented about 25% of all women seen at the main recruiting centre with menorrhagia who required surgery (figure 1). 26 women withdrew after randomisation but before surgery. We were able to contact ten of these patients. Of six who had been assigned TCRE, four had hysterectomy and two had TCRE, whereas three of four assigned hysterectomy chose TCRE and one chose hysterectomy. Follow-up data could not be obtained for a further four women, and,

Discussion

This trial highlights both the advantages and the potential drawbacks of TCRE compared with hysterectomy. The operative time, operative blood loss, complication rate, and recovery are all better with TCRE, although the difference in operating times may have been exaggerated by the experience of the surgeons who carried out TCRE. Although women consistently reported higher rates of satisfaction after hysterectomy, in our study this difference failed to reach statistical significance, even after

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