To determine the relationship between the timing of a hysterectomy performed during the menstrual cycle phase and the postoperative complication rate in women who had undergone surgery for dysfunctional uterine bleeding, the authors examined the charts of 24 patients for the 3-month period immediately after the hysterectomy. Twelve of the women were in the follicular phase, and 12 were in the luteal phase at the time they had undergone the hysterectomy. Patients were classified by operative pathology report. No significant differences (P < or = 0.05) were found between the two groups with respect to age, weight, para status, pathology, preoperative and postoperative hemoglobin levels, operation time, blood loss, days before return to full functioning, days in hospital, and uterine morphology. Further prospective studies with longer follow-up time are needed to obtain more conclusive indications regarding the optimal timing of hysterectomy during the menstrual cycle.