C*I*S*H*

5. Postoperative Care

• The patient stays in the recovery room for 1-2 hours. An indwelling catheter is left in the bladder for 12-24 hours. 2-3 L IV fluids are infused for another 24 hours.
• Diet is restricted to "full liquids" and is increased to "regular diet as tolerated" by the next day.
• On the day following surgery the patients are ambulatory, have their bandaids removed, and are allowed to take showers.
• Analgesics like PERCOCET, CODEINE, TYLENOL, maybe supplemented by IV narcotics for the first postoperative night, are usually sufficient.
• The amount of vaginal bleeding is surprisingly very small

If the patients live within reasonable distance from the hospital and have adequate support at home, they are released from the hospital 24 hours after surgery. 3-4 days later abdominal clips are removed in the office, and the presence or absence of SURGICEL is checked. Some patients pass the Surgicel plug uneventfully at home, others have it removed at the office visit.
The recovery period is very short. Within two weeks most patients return to their usual household duties, many return to work and resume their sexual activity. Follow-up visits are recommended at three weeks and six months postoperative and yearly thereafter. Pap. smears should be continued on a regular basis, spaced 1-3 years apart depending upon individual considerations.
C*I*S*H* leaves no visible abdominal scars. Vaginal examination makes it appear doubtful that the patient ever had a hysterectomy. Palpation only confirms the absence of the corpus uteri and maybe the adnexa. The emotional and psychological acceptance of C*I*S*H* is unexpectedly high.

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September 1997