Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypesMinimizing ScarsPossible Side EffectsLife After a Hysterectomy
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Types
Minimizing Scars
Possible Side Effects
Life After a Hysterectomy
This article discusses the types of scars you may develop after a hysterectomy, how to minimize scarring, and other possible side effects of the surgery.
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Types of Hysterectomy Scars
Several types of scars can develop following a hysterectomy. The scar you end up with will depend on thetype of hysterectomyyou have done.
Abdominal
An abdominal scar will develop in people who have had their uterus removed through the abdomen. There are two types of abdominal scars following a hysterectomy:
Both incisions are made above the pubic hairline. A vertical scar from the surgery runs from the pubic hairline to the belly button, and a horizontal scar runs left to right above the pubic hairline. Both types are visible and prominent. The scars in this type of hysterectomy surgery will be roughly4–6 inches long.
The Use of the Abdominal MethodWhile abdominal removal of the uterus is performed on many people, surgeons typically reserve this type of surgery for people who cannot go through other minimally invasive procedures.
The Use of the Abdominal Method
While abdominal removal of the uterus is performed on many people, surgeons typically reserve this type of surgery for people who cannot go through other minimally invasive procedures.
Vaginal
Laparoscopy
Laparoscopic proceduresare minimally invasive. During this surgery, small cuts are made in the abdomen. The laparoscope, a narrow, fiber-optic instrument with a camera on the end, is inserted through a cut in the belly button.
It gives the surgeon a view of the uterus and the surrounding area, making a larger incision unnecessary. The surgeon will access the uterus and remove it with small tools placed through the other incisions, Dime-size scars are left behind.
How Many Scars Will I Have After Laparoscopic Surgery?Since laparoscopic surgery requires the use of several tools, a person undergoing the procedure can expect at least two or three scars.
How Many Scars Will I Have After Laparoscopic Surgery?
Since laparoscopic surgery requires the use of several tools, a person undergoing the procedure can expect at least two or three scars.
Robotic
Robotic surgerytechnology combines robotics and high-definition, three-dimensional (3-D) magnification to perform a hysterectomy. Tiny surgical instruments are also used in this procedure to remove the uterus.
To perform this surgery, abdominal incisions are made. There will be roughly four or five cuts so the robotic arms and other tools can enter the abdomen. Once inside, the robotic arms move to where they need to be to cut out and remove the uterus. The scars left after a robotic hysterectomy are similar to those that develop following laparoscopic surgery.
Research has found that the scars from robotic surgery are minimal, and typically this type of procedure leaves people satisfied with their level of scarring compared to other, more invasive techniques.
Can You Avoid Hysterectomy Scars Altogether?
Hysterectomy: Overview
How to Minimize Scarring
There are several ways you can minimize scarring following a hysterectomy procedure. They revolve around aftercare routines, lifestyle changes, and medical treatment.
Proper Aftercare
It can take roughly six to eight weeks following the surgery to recover.Because of that, you’ll have to adhere to a proper aftercare routine to limit the risk of complications and minimize scarring.
The best way to minimize scarring through aftercare is to:
Risk Factors that Contribute to ScarringScarring occurs because the body has to replace damaged or injured skin with dense connective tissue. Several factors contribute to how a scar will heal, including:A person’s skin typeWhere the scar isThe direction of the woundAgeNutrition
Risk Factors that Contribute to Scarring
Scarring occurs because the body has to replace damaged or injured skin with dense connective tissue. Several factors contribute to how a scar will heal, including:A person’s skin typeWhere the scar isThe direction of the woundAgeNutrition
Scarring occurs because the body has to replace damaged or injured skin with dense connective tissue. Several factors contribute to how a scar will heal, including:
Quit Smoking
Smoking is harmful to all aspects of health. Regarding surgery, smokers are more likely to experience a delay in healing because of its effects on the immune system’s ability to heal wounds.Quitting smokingcan help combat slow wound healing.
What Is Hypertrophic Scarring?Hypertrophic scarring is an unusual response to surgery or other injuries to the skin that results in a thick and raised scar.
What Is Hypertrophic Scarring?
Hypertrophic scarring is an unusual response to surgery or other injuries to the skin that results in a thick and raised scar.
Hydration
Keeping your scar hydrated is a great way to minimize its appearance. In the same way that drinking water throughout the day helps keep the body hydrated, hydrating wounds with moisturizing gels or sheets made from silicone is also essential.
Silicone is safe to use on a wound following surgery and can fully hydrated the wound as it heals. Keeping your scar moisturized will also reduce the risk of developing ahypertrophic scar.
Healthy Diet
What you eat affects your body’s ability to heal wounds. If you are deficient in nutrients vital to wound healing, such asvitamin A,vitamin C, orzinc, yourimmune systemwill not be able to perform at its best, causing the wound to heal much slower. Eating a diet rich in whole foods and nutrients can support proper healing and minimize scarring.
How Long Does It Take a Scar to Fade with Proper Care?
Medical Treatment
If a scar is particularly bothersome after you have healed from a hysterectomy, you can opt for a medical treatment to help minimize the appearance of the scars, depending on size, type, and other factors.
Some possible options are:
How to Prevent or Minimize Surgery Scars
Treating Side Effects
Theseside effectsmay not occur in everyone who has a hysterectomy.
While recovering from a hysterectomy, you can return to your normal daily activities. While you will not be able to conceive, you may still enjoy a healthy sex life once you have healed.
In some cases, people who had experienced pain with sexual intercourse prior to a hysterectomy may find pain has resolved after surgery. This is especially true if the uterus is removed to address a health disorder causing discomfort during sex.
Hysterectomy: Long-Term Care
Summary
Hysterectomy scarring is unavoidable because of the incisions made during the procedure. There are many types of hysterectomies; some will cause more prominent scarring than others.
If the scarring is particularly bothersome, you can explore medical treatments to minimize or reduce scarring following a hysterectomy.
13 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Stanford Health Care.Techniques: Our approach to hysterectomy.Medline Plus.Hysterectomy - abdominal - discharge.Brigham and Women’s Hospital.Hysterectomy options.Corrado G, Calagna G, Cutillo G, Insinga S, Mancini E, Baiocco E, Zampa A, Bufalo A, Perino A, Vizza E.The patient and observer scar assessment scale to evaluate the cosmetic outcomes of the robotic single-site hysterectomy in endometrial cancer.Int J Gynecol Cancer.2018 Jan;28(1):194-199. doi:10.1097/IGC.0000000000001130UK National Health Service.Hysterectomy - recovery.Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Caring for your scars after skin surgery.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Scars.World Health Organization.Smoking greatly increases risk of complications after surgery.Dermnet NZ.Keloid and hypertrophic scar.De Decker I, Hoeksema H, Vanlerberghe E, Beeckman A, Verbelen J, De Coninck P, Speeckaert MM, Blondeel P, Monstrey S, Claes KEY.Occlusion and hydration of scars: Moisturizers versus silicone gels.Burns.2023 Mar;49(2):365-379. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2022.04.025Barchitta M, Maugeri A, Favara G, Magnano San Lio R, Evola G, Agodi A, Basile G.Nutrition and wound healing: An overview focusing on the beneficial effects of curcumin.Int J Mol Sci.2019 Mar 5;20(5):1119. doi:10.3390/ijms20051119UK National Health Service.Overview - scars.Danesh M, Hamzehgardeshi Z, Moosazadeh M, Shabani-Asrami F.The effect of hysterectomy on women’s sexual function: A narrative review.Med Arch.2015 Dec;69(6):387-92. doi:10.5455/medarh.2015.69.387-392
13 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Stanford Health Care.Techniques: Our approach to hysterectomy.Medline Plus.Hysterectomy - abdominal - discharge.Brigham and Women’s Hospital.Hysterectomy options.Corrado G, Calagna G, Cutillo G, Insinga S, Mancini E, Baiocco E, Zampa A, Bufalo A, Perino A, Vizza E.The patient and observer scar assessment scale to evaluate the cosmetic outcomes of the robotic single-site hysterectomy in endometrial cancer.Int J Gynecol Cancer.2018 Jan;28(1):194-199. doi:10.1097/IGC.0000000000001130UK National Health Service.Hysterectomy - recovery.Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Caring for your scars after skin surgery.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Scars.World Health Organization.Smoking greatly increases risk of complications after surgery.Dermnet NZ.Keloid and hypertrophic scar.De Decker I, Hoeksema H, Vanlerberghe E, Beeckman A, Verbelen J, De Coninck P, Speeckaert MM, Blondeel P, Monstrey S, Claes KEY.Occlusion and hydration of scars: Moisturizers versus silicone gels.Burns.2023 Mar;49(2):365-379. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2022.04.025Barchitta M, Maugeri A, Favara G, Magnano San Lio R, Evola G, Agodi A, Basile G.Nutrition and wound healing: An overview focusing on the beneficial effects of curcumin.Int J Mol Sci.2019 Mar 5;20(5):1119. doi:10.3390/ijms20051119UK National Health Service.Overview - scars.Danesh M, Hamzehgardeshi Z, Moosazadeh M, Shabani-Asrami F.The effect of hysterectomy on women’s sexual function: A narrative review.Med Arch.2015 Dec;69(6):387-92. doi:10.5455/medarh.2015.69.387-392
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Stanford Health Care.Techniques: Our approach to hysterectomy.Medline Plus.Hysterectomy - abdominal - discharge.Brigham and Women’s Hospital.Hysterectomy options.Corrado G, Calagna G, Cutillo G, Insinga S, Mancini E, Baiocco E, Zampa A, Bufalo A, Perino A, Vizza E.The patient and observer scar assessment scale to evaluate the cosmetic outcomes of the robotic single-site hysterectomy in endometrial cancer.Int J Gynecol Cancer.2018 Jan;28(1):194-199. doi:10.1097/IGC.0000000000001130UK National Health Service.Hysterectomy - recovery.Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Caring for your scars after skin surgery.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Scars.World Health Organization.Smoking greatly increases risk of complications after surgery.Dermnet NZ.Keloid and hypertrophic scar.De Decker I, Hoeksema H, Vanlerberghe E, Beeckman A, Verbelen J, De Coninck P, Speeckaert MM, Blondeel P, Monstrey S, Claes KEY.Occlusion and hydration of scars: Moisturizers versus silicone gels.Burns.2023 Mar;49(2):365-379. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2022.04.025Barchitta M, Maugeri A, Favara G, Magnano San Lio R, Evola G, Agodi A, Basile G.Nutrition and wound healing: An overview focusing on the beneficial effects of curcumin.Int J Mol Sci.2019 Mar 5;20(5):1119. doi:10.3390/ijms20051119UK National Health Service.Overview - scars.Danesh M, Hamzehgardeshi Z, Moosazadeh M, Shabani-Asrami F.The effect of hysterectomy on women’s sexual function: A narrative review.Med Arch.2015 Dec;69(6):387-92. doi:10.5455/medarh.2015.69.387-392
Stanford Health Care.Techniques: Our approach to hysterectomy.
Medline Plus.Hysterectomy - abdominal - discharge.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital.Hysterectomy options.
Corrado G, Calagna G, Cutillo G, Insinga S, Mancini E, Baiocco E, Zampa A, Bufalo A, Perino A, Vizza E.The patient and observer scar assessment scale to evaluate the cosmetic outcomes of the robotic single-site hysterectomy in endometrial cancer.Int J Gynecol Cancer.2018 Jan;28(1):194-199. doi:10.1097/IGC.0000000000001130
UK National Health Service.Hysterectomy - recovery.
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.Caring for your scars after skin surgery.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Scars.
World Health Organization.Smoking greatly increases risk of complications after surgery.
Dermnet NZ.Keloid and hypertrophic scar.
De Decker I, Hoeksema H, Vanlerberghe E, Beeckman A, Verbelen J, De Coninck P, Speeckaert MM, Blondeel P, Monstrey S, Claes KEY.Occlusion and hydration of scars: Moisturizers versus silicone gels.Burns.2023 Mar;49(2):365-379. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2022.04.025
Barchitta M, Maugeri A, Favara G, Magnano San Lio R, Evola G, Agodi A, Basile G.Nutrition and wound healing: An overview focusing on the beneficial effects of curcumin.Int J Mol Sci.2019 Mar 5;20(5):1119. doi:10.3390/ijms20051119
UK National Health Service.Overview - scars.
Danesh M, Hamzehgardeshi Z, Moosazadeh M, Shabani-Asrami F.The effect of hysterectomy on women’s sexual function: A narrative review.Med Arch.2015 Dec;69(6):387-92. doi:10.5455/medarh.2015.69.387-392
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