1. Uterus transplantation: joys and frustrations of becoming a 'complete' woman-a qualitative study regarding self-image in the 5-year period after transplantation.
- Author
-
Järvholm S, Enskog A, Hammarling C, Dahm-Kähler P, and Brännström M
- Subjects
- Adult, Child, Female, Humans, Prospective Studies, Self Concept, Sweden, Frustration, Uterus diagnostic imaging
- Abstract
Study Question: How is a women's self-image affected by uterus transplantation (UTx)?, Summary Answer: Women experienced receiving a uterus in both positive and negative ways, but in general, their self-image was positively affected; regardless of whether they have given birth to a child or not, recipients describe themselves as being 'back to normal' after the hysterectomy to remove the transplanted uterus., What Is Known Already: UTx has repeatedly proved to be a successful treatment for absolute uterine factor infertility. However, there has been no previous qualitative long-term research into the self-image of women undergoing UTx., Study Design, Size, Duration: This complete, prospective cohort study included the nine recipients of the first UTxs performed in Sweden mostly in 2013. Interviews took place in the 5 years following surgery., Participants/materials, Setting, Methods: Eight out of the nine recipients had congenital absence of the uterus, a characteristic of Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome, and one recipient lacked a uterus after a radical hysterectomy due to cervical cancer. The mean age of participants was 31.5 years at inclusion and at this time they all lived in stable marital relationships. Post-transplantation, interviews were performed annually for 5 years, comprising a total of 43 interviews. The interview followed a semi-structured guide. All interviews (median duration of around 25 minutes) were recorded, transcribed verbatim and then analysed by thematic approach., Main Results and the Role of Chance: The joys and frustrations of becoming a 'complete' woman are seen as a master theme, which influences the three underlying subthemes, a changed self-perception, a changed body and a changed sexuality. Each of these subthemes have three underlying categories., Limitations, Reasons for Caution: The small sample size is a limitation., Wider Implications of the Findings: The results provide information that will be helpful in pre-operative screening procedures and in the psychological support offered both to women who experienced successful and unsuccessful outcomes following UTx., Study Funding/competing Interest(s): Funding was received from the Jane and Dan Olsson Foundation for Science; the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation; an ALF grant from the Swedish state under an agreement between the government and the county councils; the Swedish Research Council; a Ferring Pharmaceuticals scholarship in memory of Robert Edwards; and the Iris Jonzén-Sandblom and Greta Jonzén Foundation. The authors have no competing interests., Trial Registration Number: NCT01844362., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF