ESGE survey on tissue power morcellation complications other than leiomyosarcoma

Abstract

The exact incidence of power morcellation complications (PMC) is unknown and probably underestimated. Medical literature mainly describes case reports and the vast majority of complications after tissue power morcellation are not reported. ESGE has run a survey among its members about complications emerging after laparoscopic electromechanical morcellation including the risk of leiomyosarcoma (LMS). The reported risk of a sarcoma after myoma or uterus morcellation is low and presented in a separate article. The Central office using the ESGE server and website, activating the ‘Survey Monkey’ programme, sent a request to 3422 ESGE members to answer, anonymously, a structured electronic questionnaire with multiple structured answer options, within 3 months. The doctors responding to the call were automatically given a serial number in an EXCEL spreadsheet, enabling statistical analysis using the SPSS v.18. The probabilities were calculated by using the raw data as reported to each individual question, dividing the number of incidence with surgeon’s lifetime experience in laparoscopic surgery. The electronic questionnaire was answered by 216 (6 %) surgeons. The majority of the respondents used the morcellator for 10 years. The overall probability of direct power morcellator injuries to internal organs is more frequent (0.12 %) than that of morcellator injuries to the abdominal and pelvic wall (0.06 %). The risk of parasitic myoma is estimated 0.08 and 0.16 % for the de novo endometriosis after myoma and adenomyoma morcellation. Furthermore, the vast majority of surgeons have never experienced bladder or ureter, aorta and vessel injuries by using the morcellator, proven by the standard deviation being close to zero. Three surgeons with morcellator experience between 1 and 5 years were involved in an injury that caused permanent damage, 1 nerve, 2 bowel and 1 port-site hernia injury due to the morcellator. According to surgeons’ answers, death has never occurred after power morcellation. Morcellator technical problems found also to be of low probability between 0.12 and 0.3 % as estimated for all endoscopic surgeries in lifetime of 188 surgeons. The average number of times per doctor where the morcellator stacked and stopped working is 2.17 with standard deviation equal to 4.4 and sum of incidents equal to 426 times for all 196 doctors. The most frequent technical problem was morcellator transient stacking and the least frequent was the morcellator stopped working and colpotomy needed to evacuate the tissue out of the abdominal cavity 0.12 % operations. The majority of surgeons 136/188 (72 %) are using reusable morcellator devices and 51 (27 %) are using disposable devices. Moreover, 97/188 (51.6 %) of surgeons are using exclusively, only reusable morcellators; 56/188 (29.8 %) are using both disposable and reusable types of morcellators. The incidence of power morcellation complications is very low reputedly. The ESGE board advises that endoscopic operations must be performed only by doctors who have had an adequate training and knowledge. It is compulsory to know the publications about dangers, contraindications and complications before performing these operations. A complete knowledge of techniques and principles of endoscopic surgery is needed to avoid and minimize complications. A training session prior to morcellator first use might decrease further PMC.