Urodynamic assessment of bladder-outlet obstruction in women

Bladder-outlet obstruction (BOO) in women has become an increasingly recognized entity over the past several years. This is partly because of the greater number of anti-incontinence surgeries being performed, which can infrequently result in iatrogenic obstruction; and partly because of improvements in the ability to diagnose and recognize BOO. In this review, the symptoms associated with BOO in women, and whether these symptoms can reliably predict the presence of BOO, will be discussed. The incidence of BOO following surgical anti-incontinence procedures and the urodynamic diagnosis of BOO in women, detailing the various criteria that have been proposed, are also reviewed.