Hysterectomy will have everlasting impact on your body, but right after the surgery you have to overcome the consequences of the surgery itself. When you come home, you may find that you tire easily. Your appetite may be diminished. You will likely have light spotting for 2 – 4 weeks. It may be pink, red, or brownish. It should not have a bad odor.
In general, you can have problems in
| • |
urinary tract
|
|---|---|
| • |
incisional problems
|
| • |
gastrointestinal problems
|
| • |
vaginal problems
|
| • |
mood changes
|
| • |
pain
|
| • |
and general problems such as allergic reactions due to medications such as antibiotics and pain relievers
|
The Usual Causes Of Vaginal Discharge After Hysterectomy
Vaginal problems usually are:
| • |
bloody or odorous discharge in the first 1-4 weeks,
|
|---|---|
| • |
odor without much discharge (may require topical vaginal antibiotic cream if it continues longer than a week),
|
| • |
vulvar burning or itching (usually just due to dryness and not a yeast infection).
|
Within 2-3 weeks after the operation, a watery, urine-like vaginal discharge may appear. It indicates ureteral or bladder injury or fistula and can happen in 1-2% of cases.
If there is a vaginal discharge after hysterectomy, avoid baths and pools for at least 48 hours. Consult your doctor and/or surgeon about what to do next.
The discharge should last no more than 2-4 weeks after the surgery, and it should gradually change its color from red to a pale brown color.
Human Papillomavirus
Another possibility for a vaginal discharge after hysterectomy is that a human papillomavirus (HPV) is present. The HPV is a group of about 100 viruses, about 30 of which are dangerous and will show as bumps or warts, sometimes in the shape of cauliflower. Most people clear up these infections on their own — they neither know that they were infected, nor do they have any kind of symptoms, and yet they can still transmit it to their sexual partners.
Whether the HPV will show as a problem, with its symptoms, will depend on the immune state of you body, and on the genetical predisposition. In classical medicine, there is no cure for the human papillomavirus, while in homeopathy
there is a system to eliminate it, through an application of a miasm called sycosis. Actually, on this site, there is a page that you should read carefully regardless of you having an endometriosis or HPV, because the origin of the illness is the same, weak genetic predisposition or the presence of a sycotic miasm as it is worded in homeopathy.
Other Vaginal Problems That May Develop After A Hysterectomy
An infrequent but major complication would be a vaginal vault prolapse due to the surgery, and sometimes it takes a year or two to develop. It occurs when the top of the vagina drops down due to a reduction in support structures. The surgeon may reduce the risk of vaginal vault prolapse during the time of hysterectomy itself, otherwise, another surgery may be needed to correct the problem.
A very rare complication after hysterectomy would be abdominal or vaginal herniation of the bowels (evisceration) through the incisions.