Associations between hysterectomy history and depressive symptoms among women in the United States

Abstract Hysterectomy is the second most common nonobstetrical surgical procedure performed in US women. We interrogate the relationship between current depressive symptoms and a history of undergoing a hysterectomy in recent cohorts of US women aged 20 years and older. We utilized data from the 2005-2018 cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Logistic regression models were used to examine associations between hysterectomy history, current age, timing since hysterectomy, race, ethnicity, and current depressive symptoms. Models were unadjusted and adjusted for educational status, body mass index, alcohol use, cigarette use, hypertension, heart disease, number of pregnancies, marital status, and interview year. The analysis included 1110 women. Findings indicated limited evidence of an association between current depressive symptoms among US women and hysterectomy history; the odds of depressive symptoms among women who had a hysterectomy and ovaries removed compared to those with no hysterectomy were 1.30 (95% CI, 0.63, 2.66), and the relationship between current depressive symptoms and hysterectomy varied by race and ethnicity. These findings highlight potential associations between undergoing a hysterectomy and depressive symptoms among women. Future research should continue to explore associations longitudinally to ascertain mental health before and after undergoing a hysterectomy with refined measures of depression assessments and large sample sizes.