Dr. Kelli Beingesser presented today about Laparoscopic myomectomy and power morcellation at the Laparoscopic Institute for Gynecology & Oncology (LIGO) Surgical Masters’ Course in San Francisco.

Here are few points she brought up about power morcellation and sarcomas:

1. Most womyn with sarcoma are postmenopausal.

2. Imaging can not diagnose sarcoma, but a single mass with poor margins and rapid growth should raise suspicion.

3. If sarcoma is morcellated, the recurrence is higher and survival rate is lower.

4. Power morcellation should be avoided if there is doubt or suspicion of the presence of sarcoma.

5. Alternatively, morcellation within a bag can be performed in cases where a sarcoma might be suspected.

It is worth noting that Johnson&Johnson has already pulled their power morcellator of the shelves.

A simple Google search for “morcellation lawsuit” brings up a plethora of ads and posts by lawyers and law firms as Dr. Beingesser pointed out today.

Given the above, alternatives to power morcellation will be sought. This could be via placing the fibroid or uterus in a leak-proof bag and trying to morcellate vaginally or abdominally at the expense of: 1> a larger skin incision, 2> a longer operative time, 3> a steeper learning curve, 4> less surgeons pursuing minimally invasive surgery for fibroids.

Here is what LIGO faculty: Dr. Kelli Beingesser (California), Dr. Francisco Garcini (Illinois) and Dr. Samar Nahas (Ontario) had to say about power morcellation and how the FDA statement impacted their practice:

Here is what Dr. Kate O’Hanlan, LIGO founder and chairwoman, said:

This video has been added after Dr. Hooman Noorchashm’s comment below:

Categories: Gynecology, Health

Tags: fibroid, gynecologist, hysterectomy, Laparoscopic Hysterectomy, laparoscopy, lawsuit, Morcellating, Morcellator, power morcellation, Vancouver