Does stage of menstrual cycle affect recovery after surgery in premenopausal women?

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‘A good recovery’ after anaesthesia and surgery is a key objective for patients and their treating team. It is not simply avoidance of complications, but also freedom from discomfort, postoperative nausea, and a rapid return to preoperative levels of function and psychological wellbeing. Delayed or incomplete recovery can have wide-ranging effects on an individual and those around them. The concept of a ‘good recovery’ is patient-centred, thus it is the patient’s assessment of their recovery that is of interest. Our aim is to determine whether stage of menstrual cycle affects quality of recovery after surgery in premenopausal women. Cycle stage will be measured by questionnaires and preoperative hormone blood levels. Quality of recovery will be assessed on the day after surgery by a patient-reported questionnaire which assesses pain, physical comfort, physical independence, emotions and psychological support. This study may provide information on why women generally have a worse recovery after anaesthesia and surgery when compared with men. If a link between menstrual cycle and postoperative recovery is found, women could choose the best time for elective surgery, to improve recovery, reduce pain, nausea and vomiting, as well as limit the side-effects of treatment of these conditions. The study's findings may encourage research into quality of recovery in peri- and postmenopausal women receiving hormone replacement therapy, a group who typically undergo more extensive surgery with a prolonged recovery. This study will be undertaken at Epworth HealthCare, a large tertiary healthcare organisation in Victoria, Australia. The researchers are anaesthesia and women’s health clinicians with an interest in patient-centred clinical outcomes research.