Perioperative complications in obese women vs normal-weight women who undergo vaginal surgery.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare the incidence of perioperative complications in obese and normal-weight patients who undergo vaginal urogynecologic surgery. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted for obese patients (body mass index, > or = 30 kg/m2) who underwent vaginal surgery and who were matched with patients with normal body mass indices (> 18.5 kg/m2 but < 30 kg/m2) by surgical procedures. Demographic information, comorbidities, and perioperative (< or = 6 weeks) complications were documented. Logistic regression analysis was used to compare the incidence of perioperative complications and to adjust for baseline differences. RESULTS: Seven hundred forty-two patients underwent vaginal surgery during the study period; 235 women were considered to have obese body mass indices. We matched 194 of these patients with normal-weight control subjects. There was no statistical difference in the proportion of subjects who had at least 1 perioperative complication (20% [obese] vs 15% [nonobese]). However, obese subjects were more likely to have an operative site infection (adjusted odds ratio, 5.5; [95% CI, 1.7-24.7]; P = .01). CONCLUSION: The overall perioperative complication rate in obese and nonobese women is low, with obesity as an independent risk factor for the development of operative site infections.

Duke Scholars

Author Matthew Don Barber Obstetrics and Gynecology