Menopause is the cessation of monthly uterine lining proliferation, ripening of an egg and subsequent menstrual flow. Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus, which may be done to treat cancer, fibroids, or other difficult or dangerous conditions. The process may or may not include removal of the ovaries which produce female hormones. Many women experience symptoms of menopause post-hysterectomy because of the surgical loss—as opposed to shut down—of female reproductive organs.
Cessation of Menstruation
Perhaps the most immediately noticeable menopause-like symptom that women experience after hysterectomy, regardless of whether or not the ovaries were also taken, is the cessation of the menstrual period, notes MayoClinic.com. Hormone production from the ovaries notwithstanding, if there’s no uterine lining to proliferate, there is simply no possibility for the sloughing of a uterine lining which constitutes the menstrual flow. Since it is in the uterus that a fertilized egg implants and develops during pregnancy, women who’ve had hysterectomies, like those who’ve been through menopause, can no longer become pregnant.
Increased Risk of Disease
Estrogen, which protects women from certain diseases, diminishes significantly in concentration following either hysterectomies or menopause. The New York State Department of Health notes that women who’ve undergone hysterectomies—particularly those for whom surgery has included removal of the ovaries, but to some extent all hysterectomy patients—experience reduced estrogen level, which puts them at increased risk for cardiovascular disease. MayoClinic.com notes a similar effect as a result of menopause; while men have higher risk of heart disease than women of childbearing age due to the cardioprotective role of estrogen, that protection is lost following menopause or hysterectomy. Osteoporosis, or weakening of the bones, is also more common in women who’ve undergone hysterectomy or are menopausal, since estrogen helps increase calcium absorption and bone density.
Decreased Sexual Desire
Diminished reproductive function, whether through menopause or hysterectomy, causes a woman’s body to produce less testosterone, the hormone responsible for sexual desire, and less natural vaginal lubrication. These two factors combine to reduce sexual desire in many women, notes the New York State Department of Health. MayoClinic.com suggests that women who have had good sex lives prior to menopause or surgery can continue to enjoy sexual relationships through better communication with their partners and application of lubrication to supplement the body’s diminished ability to moisten vaginal tissues.
