Trends in Indications, Intraoperative Findings and Outcome of Relaparotomy after Caesarean Section at a Tertiary Hospital in Eastern Zone Tanzania; Five Years’ Review

Abstract

Background: The increased incidences of caesarean section rate is associated with a number of post-operative complications; one being re-laparotomy which is considered a maternal near-miss. The purpose of a re-laparotomy is to manage complications of the previous surgery such as unsecured hemostasis, manage intraabdominal infection, repairing of iatrogenic damaged organs like bowels, ureters and bladder, relieve intestinal obstruction and maintain intestinal continuity or to carry out delayed curative surgery. In general, second surgery increases not only the morbidity but also the risk of maternal mortality. Methods: The study was cross sectional, conducted at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in MNH. It involved review of medical records of all women who necessitated re-laparotomy following Caesarean Section (CS) that was performed either at MNH or from referring health facilities during the study period. Results: There were 193 relaparotomy cases, 98% were referrals. Atonic uterus and sepsis (septic uterus, pelvic abscess and pus in peritoneal cavity) as intraoperative finding showed statistical significance in our study. Atonic uterus for those women who underwent relaparotomy due to post-partum hemorrhage (PPH) increase from 1(7.7%) in 2017 to 6(14%) in 2021 with an average increase of 2.31 % every year. Number of cases for sepsis (combination of septic uterus, pelvic abscess and pus in peritoneal cavity) was significant decreasing every year from 22(37.3%) in 2018 to 7(16.3%) 2021with an average decrease of 3.15% every year from 2017 to 2021. The number of cases who had hysterectomy as one of the post-operative outcomes was statistically significant decreasing from 44(74.6%) to 26(60.5%) over the study period with an average decrease of 5.89% every year from 2018 to 2021. Conclusion: The most frequent indication for relaparotomy after CS was a burst abdomen. For the women who had relaparotomy due to uncontrollable PPH, the main intraoperative .......