Does Betty need hysterectomy for prolapse? We think not. Dr R guest blog on Women’s Voices for Change

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Betty, a woman with uterine prolapse, recently wrote in to this blog, asking advice after her doctor told her she would need a hysterectomy to fix her prolapse. We now understand that the mechanics of prolapse are all about those ligaments, and that the uterus, literally, contributes nothing to prolapse other than it’s change in position from “up there” to “out there”.  Dr. Pat Allen, Gynecologist extraordinaire and founder of Women’s Voices for Change, called me in to pinch hit on this one, and with bases full, Dr. R goes to bat:

Dear Betty,

You’ve done a great job of describing a condition that many women are intimately familiar with and, like you, embarrassed to talk about. I asked WVFC Medical Advisory Board member Lauri Romanzi, M.D., a specialist in reconstructive pelvic surgery and urogynecology, to respond. Which she did, pulling out a drawerful of medical illustrations to help explain what’s going on in your body, and why a hysterectomy isn’t the answer. —Dr. Pat

Betty\’s Prolapse Problem