After a unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (removal of one ovary and its fallopian tube), most people recover within two to six weeks depending on whether the surgery was done laparoscopically or through a larger incision. Your remaining ovary takes over hormone production, so you won’t enter menopause, and your periods will continue. But there are real changes to be aware of, both in the short term and years down the road.
The First Days and Weeks of Recovery
If your surgery was done laparoscopically through small incisions, you can typically go home the same day. Open surgery with a larger abdominal incision means a hospital stay of three to five days. Either way, expect soreness around the incision sites, bloating, and fatigue for the first week or two. Many people feel significantly better by the end of week two, though energy levels can take longer to fully bounce back.
The standard restriction is no lifting anything heavier than 10 pounds for six weeks, which is meant to prevent a hernia at the incision site. Most surgeons also recommend avoiding sexual intercourse for roughly four to six weeks. Driving is typically off the table for two to three weeks, partly because twisting to check blind spots can strain your abdomen and partly because pain medications can impair reaction time. Light walking is encouraged from the first few days, as it helps prevent blood clots and gets your digestion moving again, but strenuous exercise usually waits until the four-to-six-week mark.
Complication Rates Are Low
Serious complications from this surgery are uncommon. In studies of laparoscopic oophorectomy, urinary tract infection occurred in about 2.7% of patients and incisional skin infection in about 4.3%. Injury to nearby organs during surgery and the need to convert to a larger incision each happened in fewer than 2% of cases. Blood clots occurred in roughly 0.5%. Signs to watch for during recovery include fever, increasing redness or drainage at the incision, heavy vaginal bleeding, or pain that worsens rather than improves after the first few days.
Your Remaining Ovary Picks Up the Work
This is the most reassuring part of losing one ovary: the remaining one compensates. It continues producing estrogen and progesterone at levels sufficient to maintain your cycle and prevent the kind of hormone crash that happens when both ovaries are removed. You will still get your period, and your cycle length and flow may not change at all. Some people notice mild irregularity for the first few months as the remaining ovary adjusts, but this generally stabilizes.
Because your hormone levels stay largely intact, you won’t experience the sudden hot flashes, vaginal dryness, or sleep disruption that accompany surgical menopause from bilateral (both-sided) removal. Hormone replacement therapy is not routinely needed after a unilateral procedure.
Fertility After Losing One Ovary
If you’re hoping to conceive in the future, the evidence is encouraging. Research shows that women who’ve had one ovary removed have clinical pregnancy rates comparable to women with both ovaries. In one study of women who underwent fertility-sparing surgery for early ovarian tumors, 57% of those trying conceived, with the vast majority doing so naturally rather than through assisted reproduction. The live birth rate among those pregnancies was nearly 90%.
The timeline to conception can be longer. In that same study, the median time from surgery to first pregnancy was about 31 to 39 months, which partly reflects the recovery period and, in some cases, follow-up monitoring before doctors gave the green light to try. If you’re under 35 and otherwise healthy, your chances of natural conception remain strong with one functioning ovary. Ovulation simply alternates less predictably, since there’s only one ovary releasing eggs, but the remaining ovary often increases its output to partially compensate.
Menopause May Come Slightly Earlier
While you won’t enter menopause from the surgery itself, there is a measurable shift in timing. A longitudinal cohort study found that women who had one ovary removed reached natural menopause about 1.8 years earlier on average than women with both ovaries. The effect was strongest when the surgery was performed before age 40, where menopause arrived roughly two years sooner. The risk of premature ovarian insufficiency (losing ovarian function before age 40) was also elevated in this group.
For most people, a difference of one to two years has limited practical impact. But if you had surgery in your 20s or 30s, it’s worth being aware that perimenopause symptoms could show up a bit earlier than you might otherwise expect. This is especially relevant for fertility planning, since it means your window for natural conception could close slightly sooner.
Bone Health Deserves Attention
Estrogen plays a central role in maintaining bone density, and any reduction in ovarian function can accelerate bone loss. After bilateral oophorectomy (removing both ovaries), studies have documented an 8.5% decrease in spinal bone density within just 18 months. That level of loss doesn’t apply to unilateral surgery, since your remaining ovary keeps producing estrogen. However, the earlier onset of menopause associated with losing one ovary means you’ll spend more years in the post-menopausal, lower-estrogen state where bone loss accelerates.
The practical takeaway: weight-bearing exercise, adequate calcium, and vitamin D become more important as you approach midlife. If you had the surgery young, a baseline bone density scan in your late 40s or early 50s can help catch any thinning early.
Emotional and Psychological Effects
The physical recovery gets most of the attention, but the emotional side is real and underreported. A large cohort study in Taiwan found that oophorectomy (unilateral or bilateral) increased the overall risk of depression by 36% compared to matched controls. The risk was highest in women under 50 and in those with existing health conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, or anxiety. The elevated risk of depression persisted for at least six years after surgery.
Some of this is hormonal, even with one ovary still functioning. Some of it is situational: processing a cancer scare, grieving the loss of a body part, or worrying about fertility. These feelings don’t mean something is wrong with you. They’re a normal response to a significant medical event. If you notice persistent low mood, loss of interest in things you used to enjoy, or worsening anxiety in the months after surgery, bringing it up with your doctor is worthwhile. The emotional recovery can take longer than the physical one, and that’s common.
What Daily Life Looks Like Long Term
For most people, life after a unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy returns to normal within a couple of months. You’ll have one functioning ovary doing the job of two, your periods will continue, and your hormone levels will remain in the normal range. Exercise, sex, diet, and daily activity all go back to what they were before surgery once you’ve healed.
The things worth staying aware of over time are subtle: a slightly earlier menopause transition, the importance of bone health as you age, and attention to your emotional wellbeing in the first few years. None of these are guaranteed problems. They’re small shifts in risk that are easy to monitor and manage when you know to look for them.