[Complications of urinary incontinence surgery: 800 procedures]

To present the complications of urinary incontinence surgery through our experience over 13 years with 800 procedures in continuous practice. These complications were compared to those of the literature for the same type of procedure.

From January 1988 to September 2001, 800 procedures were performed in the same hospital in the gynecology unit. The procedures were: Bologna (91 cases), laparotomic Burch (83 cases), laparoscopic Burch (62 cases), Pereyra (112 cases), Stamey (8 cases), Ingelman-Sundberg (27 cases), Mouchel (40 cases), autograft sling (22 cases), mesh sling: small size (62 cases), large size (12 cases) et TVT (tension free vaginal tape) (281 cases). These procedures were performed alone in 475 cases (125 cases with hysterectomy for other reason), and in 325 cases associated with prolapse surgery. The complications were noted during the hospitalization and at the control at 3 months and 1 year. We only noted the complications attributable to the different procedures.

Bladder injuries are found in 3.5% (0 to 6%), hemorrhage in 1% (0 to 3.8%), urinary infection in 4.5% (0 to 11.3%), fever at 48 hours in 1.5% (0 to 9.7%), momentary urine retention in 17% (1.6 to 64.5%), de novo dysuria in 10.9% (0 to 35.5%), de novo urge in 6.9% (0 to 11%). For the other complications, which were less frequent or more procedure-specific, we noted: subcutaneous emphysema in 1.6% of the laparoscopic Burch procedures, cutting thread in 4.8% of the laparoscopic Burch procedures and 2.7% in Pereyra, rejection of prosthetic mesh in 9% of the large slings, 14% with the small sling and 28.2% with the Mouchel procedure, a wound abscess in 3.8% of the Bologna procedures, 1.2% of laparotomic Burch procedures. The percentage of women who had at least one complication was a minimum of 18% for TVT and a maximum of 62.9% for small synthetic sling. In summary, 32% of the patients presented at least one complication. Overall, we noted urinary complications in 41% of the patients, which accounted for 81% of the complications.

We reviewed more than 100 references concerning complications of the procedures performed in these patients. "Blind" procedures gave more bladder injuries, slings more dysuria and urine retention and procedures using mesh gave more pool healing or rejection especially with the old materials. A particular place must be made for the TVT, recent procedure, which is widely studied. We reviewed 35 references explaining complications of TVT or proposing preventions measures.

There are many complications of urinary incontinence surgery, but the majority is quickly resolved without consequence. The only after-effects are dysuria which are the most often slow micturition, and urge which are a real problem, sometimes leading to sling removal.