ABSTRACT
The most common secondary procedures performed in conjunction with laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy (LAVH) or abdominal hysterectomy are salpingectomy, oophorectomy, or both [1]. Although there is controversy even today about prophylactic oophorectomy, there has been debate on the subject from the end of the nineteenth century, since Lawson Tait [2], the foremost advocate of spaying in women, and Spencer Wells slugged out their acrimonious differences on the subject. Even those who removed benign ovarian cysts were labelled ‘gelders’ with a resultant ruined reputation. However, although many aspects of the topic have now crystallized, controversy is raging over the age at which the ovaries should be removed prophylactically.
