Three Women Offer Insight Into Life-Changing Surgery

Tuesday, March 1, 2005

Three Real Women Offer Insight Into Life-Changing Surgery (NAPSA)—Every year, approximately 600,000 womenin the U.S. have hysterectomies—and each one of these women has questions, as do their husbands, boyfriends, children and friends. Their concerns are about recov- ery—‘Whenwill I be able to exercise following the surgery?” “Will I have hot flashes?”—or about the procedure itself—“What does the surgery entail?” “How will I feel afterward?” To help answer some questions surrounding this major yet common surgical procedure, Novogyne Pharmaceuticals has created a new documentary-style video they hope will help alleviate some of the anxiety patients may have while encouraging productive dialogues with their doctors. The 27minute video titled Hysterectomy: One Woman’s Journey introduces viewers to Cindie, Hilda and Maria—each of whom speaks candidly about her hysterectomy. “In my experience, information and instruction provided to patients before an operation have been shown to help patients deal more effectively with surgery,” said Javier Vizoso, M.D., immedi- ate past chairman of the Obstet- rics-Gynecology Department at Baptist and South Miami Hospi- tals in Miami, FL. Dr. Vizoso performed the surgery on all the womenfeatured in the video. “T believe if people are provided with the correct information, it tends to decrease complications, shorten the length of the hospital- ization and promote psychological well-being,” said Vizoso. By watching the video, view- ers witness a hysterectomy through the eyes of Cindie and her family. Her experience begins with family discussions, a brief overview of her gynecological issues and meetings with Dr. Vizoso. The video follows her into the operating room, providing an animated 3-D illustration and step-by-step verbal explanation of the surgery. Cindie is followed out of sur- gery and talks about her experience over the next few days. According to the National Women’s Health Information Center, one in three American women will have a hysterectomy by the time sheis 60 yearsold. The free, take-home video Hysterectomy: One Woman’s Journey can be obtained only through doctor’s offices. Health care professionals can orderfree copies of the video byvisiting www.hysterectomyjourney.com. VIV-9212, B

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