Omission of Pelvic Examination Before Gender-Affirming Hysterectomy and Vaginectomy

Abstract

Surgeons may be performing pelvic examinations on transgender patients before gender-affirming pelvic surgery (hysterectomy and vaginectomy) without a clinically significant indication. A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a single-institution academic referral center comparing 30-day perioperative outcomes of all 62 gender-affirming pelvic surgeries, including hysterectomy alone, hysterectomy with vaginectomy, and vaginectomy alone, between April 2018 and March 2022. More than half (53.2%, n=33) of the 62 patients did not have an in-office, preoperative, internal pelvic examination within 1 year of gender-affirming surgery. There were no significant differences in patient characteristics nor 30-day perioperative outcomes between the examined and examination-omitted groups, suggesting that omission of a preoperative pelvic examination is probably safe before gender-affirming hysterectomy and vaginectomy, minimizing barriers to gender-affirming surgical care.

In Brief

Gender-affirming hysterectomy and vaginectomy were safely performed without an in-office, preoperative, internal pelvic examination, suggesting omission is likely a safe practice.