Clinical
Female Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI)
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Abstract Centre
Female Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) is a very common problem. Prevalence rates are wide-ranging (4-33%), due to heterogeneity in methodology, definition of UI and the populations included. The gold standard surgery for SUI since 1996 has been polypropylene Tension Free Vaginal Tapes (TVT). These are placed under the urethra with different techniques; retropubic, transobturator and single incision. Due to serious complications related to meshes in general and malplaced TVT; the usage of TVTs is considerably restricted through regulations imposed by health authorities in many countries. TVT is associated with complications (Ref. 1 & 2) bladder perforation, urethral invasion and vaginal erosions. In Sweden 2020, 2302 TVT procedures were done of which 1243 were retropubic TVT ( Swedish National Quality Register Of Gynecological Surgery)(Ref.3). With retropubic TVT procedure, cystoscopy is mandatory, because of risk for bladder perforation which can be easily corrected by repositioning the tape, during the operation, without any detrimental consequences. The video film shows how pelvic floor ultrasound can aid in the diagnosis of mesh complications and the consequences of peroperative missing a bladder perforation!
Case report: A 36 years old healthy multipara presented with symptoms of SUI, and was operated under local anaesthesia and sedation with a retropubic TVT. Post operatively she experienced only an marginal improvement in her SUI but developed urgency , suprapubic pain with full bladder, painful badder emptying which accentuated to a grating sensation of her bladder moving on barbed wire at the end of bladder emptying! She was treated with analgesic and antimuscarinic medications for pain and urgency , with marginal improvement. With 3D ultrasound of bladder a TVT was found inside the bladder and cystoscopy confirmed the free lying tape which hanged down from the bladder roof towards the left of midline. Peroperatively, the left arm of TVT was found adherent to the anterior surface of the bladder wall and perforated the detrusor from bladder roof.
Post operatively patients urgency, lower abdominal pain with bladder filling and painful bladder emptying disappeared. Urodynamics showed SUI and the patient was offered transobturator TVT. Pelvic floor ultrasound , 2D and 3D is helpful in the diagnosis of mesh complications.
Symptoms of dysuria, urgency, painful bladder emptying , urinary tract infections and bladder stones after a TVT operation should be investigated with cystoscopy to exclude underlying problem with misplaced TVT.
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