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Removal of an Intravesical Gellhorn Pessary and Staged Repair of a Residual Large Vesico-Vaginal Fistula
Published on: April 14, 2026
Vesicovaginal fistula after Irving sterilization: a case report
Annett Gauruder-Burmester1, Jens Wessel, Volker Viereck
1Urogynecology Section, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Charité Campus Mitte, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Schumannstr. 20/21, 10117 Berlin, Germany. annett.gauruder@snafu.de
Background:
Patients scheduled for gynecologic surgery must be informed about the development of urogenital fistulae as a possible complication.
Case:
A 49-year-old woman underwent Irving sterilization with subsequent abdominal hysterectomy due to intraabdominal abscess formation. Inadvertent damage complication to the bladder during hysterectomy led to development of a vesicovaginal fistula despite intraoperative management. The fistula was repaired at once in a second session. As a sequela of bladder injury, the patient had recurrent vesical diverticula and urolithiasis with repeated removal of the diverticula and stones. A subsequent intervention performed laparoscopically led to development of a second vesicovaginal fistula. In addition, an anesthesia-induced complication resulted in cerebral hypoxia with postoperative development of Parkinson's disease.
Conclusion:
Retrospectively, there is doubt whether the proper surgical procedures were employed in this case. The fact that the patient had type 1 diabetes mellitus gives rise to the question of why no conservative method of contraception was chosen. The type of operative approach in elective surgery should always be planned on the basis of the individual patient's overall condition and in relation to the anatomic situation.
