Urinary incontinence affects approximately 50% of women, with up to 80% of these women experiencing stress urinary incontinence (SUI) at some point in their lives.1-3 While conservative measures can offer some improvement in symptoms, the mainstay of treatment for SUI is surgical intervention.4,5 The lifetime risk of undergoing surgery for SUI is 13.6%, and surgery leads to a major improvement in quality of life and productivity.1,6
Types of slings used for SUI
Sling procedures are the most commonly used surgical approach for the treatment of SUI. Two types of urethral slings are used: the midurethral sling and the autologous fascial (pubovaginal) sling. The midurethral sling, which is the most frequently used sling today, can be further characterized as the retropubic sling, the transobturator sling, and the mini sling (FIGURE 1).
Retropubic sling
A retropubic sling is a midurethral mesh sling that is placed beneath the urethra at the midpoint between the urethral meatus and the bladder neck. The arms of the sling extend behind the pubic symphysis, providing a hammock-like support that helps prevent leakage with increased abdominal pressures. The retropubic sling is the most commonly used type of sling. For women presenting with uncomplicated SUI who desire surgical correction, it often is the best choice for providing long-term treatment success.7
Transobturator sling
A transobturator sling is a midurethral mesh sling that is placed beneath the urethra as described above, but the arms of the sling extend outward through the obturator foramen and into the groin. This enables support of the midurethra, but this sling is less likely to result in such complications as bladder perforation or postoperative urinary retention. Transobturator slings also are associated with lower rates of voiding dysfunction and urinary urgency than retropubic slings.7-9 However, transobturator slings have higher rates of groin pain, and they are less effective in maintaining long-term cure of SUI.7
First introduced in 1996, the midurethral sling quickly grew in popularity for the treatment of SUI because of its high success rates and its minimally invasive approach.10 Both retropubic and transobturator slings are safe, extensively researched surgical approaches for the management of SUI.3 Midurethral slings have a very high rate of incontinence cure (80%–90%) and extremely high patient satisfaction rates (85%–90%), as even patients without complete cure report meaningful symptomatic improvement.7,8,11
Single-incision (mini) sling
A single-incision sling is a midurethral mesh sling that is designed to be shorter in length than standard midurethral slings. The placed sling lies under the midurethra and extends toward the superior edge of the obturator foramen but does not penetrate it. The sling is held in place by small pledgets on either side of the mesh hammock that anchor it in place to the obturator internus muscular fascia. Because this “mini” sling was introduced in 2006, fewer long-term data are available for this sling than for standard midurethral slings.
Continue to: Autologous (fascial) sling...