Tracking Menopause Post-Hyst

I had an Hysterectomy for fibroid tumors/cramps/excessive bleeding. I tried many options before the surgery. All went well and I just wish I had done it sooner. The surgery removed only my uterus, not my cervix and ovaries.

I'm in the midst of menopause, and am having a hard time finding useful information; every book I've picked up presumes that if I've had a Hysterectomy I don't have any ovaries. Can you recommend a good resource?

[Erich T Wyckoff, MD]

The type of hysterectomy you had is called "supracervical hysterectomy". I recommend you start with our governing boards website "acog.org" which also provides all the patient friendly pamphlets found in you doctors office. As far as text, the ones read by physicians include Comprehensive Gynecology by Droegemueller, and Clinical Gynecologic Endocrinology and Infertility by Speroff. These books are full of medical jargon and may leave the average layperson even more confused.You can expect to experience the same common menopausal symptoms as someone has not had a hysterectomy minus the irregular vaginal bleeding and spotting. Thank you,
Erich T. Wyckoff, MD, FACOG