OBJECTIVE:

To identify complications of gynecologic surgery in patients older than 60 years.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Observational, longitudinal, retrospective and descriptive study of a case series of patients over 60 years of age with gynecological surgery performed between 2015 and 2018 who resulted with complications of the operative technique or medical complications that merited postoperative intensive care. Descriptive statistics were used with SPSS version 20 software.

RESULTS:

19 patients aged 71.52 ± 7.23 years were studied. Preoperative diagnoses: pelvic statics disorders 6 of 19, noncancerous tumors 6 of 19, abscesses 5 of 19 and postmenopausal uterine bleeding 2 of 19. Operative complications: hemorrhage n = 7, sepsis n = 6, bladder injury n = 1, ureteral injury n = 1, hemorrhage with sepsis n = 1. Medical complications: diabetic ketoacidosis n = 1, angina pectoris n = 1, transient hypotension without shock n = 1). Intensive care unit complications: residual abscess n = 2, contained eventration n = 1, necrotizing fasciitis n = 1, infected surgical wound n = 1.

CONCLUSION:

The most frequent complications were those of the operative type followed by those that emerged during the stay in critical care. The experience suggests the convenience of caring for patients over 60 years of age in the postoperative period of gynecologic surgery in an intensive care unit, particularly when there are severe infectious processes or prolonged interventions with technical difficulties and bleeding.

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