Objective
To identify possible factors associated with undergoing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO) at the time of hysterectomy among women with benign conditions.
Methods
This is a cross-sectional analysis using the 2005 Nationwide Inpatient Sample. Women 18 years or older who underwent hysterectomy with BSO or hysterectomy only for a noncancerous condition were included. We examined a broad range of factors associated with undergoing BSO in multivariable analyses.
Results
Fifty-two percent of 461,321 hysterectomies included BSO, with a mean age of 49 years compared to 43 years in the hysterectomy only group (p<.001). The odds of BSO were two times higher in the Midwest and South, and 1.67 times higher in the West as compared to the Northeast (p<.001). Women who were uninsured or had Medicaid were more likely to undergo BSO compared to those with private insurance (OR 1.86, 95%CI 1.14–3.04 for “no charge/charity”, OR 1.21, 95% CI 1.08–1.35 for Medicaid) While BSO was more common among White women than African-American, Latina, and Asian women (p<0.001), lower income was associated with BSO among African-American and White women only, not among Asian and Latina women (P=.007 for test for interaction). BSO was 8 times as likely with a laparoscopic hysterectomy and 12 times as likely with an abdominal hysterectomy compared to a vaginal approach (p<.001). Women who had endometriosis, pelvic infection, or an ovarian cyst were more likely to undergo BSO (p<.001) compared to women who did not have these diagnoses.
Conclusion
There is significant nationwide variation in the practice of BSO. Age, route of hysterectomy, and diagnosis at surgery affect BSO rates. Nonclinical factors such as race/ethnicity, insurance status, income, and geographic location are also associated with BSO practice.