When compared with white women, black women undergoing hysterectomy for benign indications undergo a higher proportion of open surgery and have more surgical complications, a new study found. The cohort study included 15,136 women who underwent hysterectomy for benign indications (75% white, 25% black). The primary outcome was route of hysterectomy and the secondary outcome was postoperative complication. Researchers found:

• Black women were more likely to undergo an open hysterectomy than white women (~50% vs 23%).
• Black women also experienced more major complications than white women (4.1% vs 2.3%) and more minor complications.
• These disparities persisted after adjusting for confounding medical, surgical, and gynecological factors.