[Low urinary tract symptoms after Thierry's spatula delivery at first pregnancy]

This study was undertaken to evaluate prevalence of low urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) after Thierry's spatula delivery at first pregnancy.

A retrospective study of 236 primiparous with instrumental delivery or spontaneous delivery who had delivered from January 2001 to December 2002. Low urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) were evaluated one year after delivery with a questionnaire. Incidence of LUTS was compared depending on mode of delivery.

Of the 236 patients included, 88.1% replied to the questionnaire, 106 who delivered spontaneously and 102 who underwent Thierry's spatula delivery. The incidence of urinary incontinence was similar after instrumental deliveries and after spontaneous vaginal deliveries (34.9 versus 24.5%, p=0.10). In univariate analysis, symptoms of urinary urgency and urinary frequency were higher after instrumental delivery than after spontaneous delivery, respectively, 34.9 versus 22.5%, p=0.049 and 19.8 versus 8.8%, p=0.03. After controlling for confounding factors, no difference in LUTS was observed between the two groups; the respective adjusted odds-ratios (95% IC) were 1,5 (0.8-3) for urinary incontinence, 1.7 (0.9-3.5) for urgency and 2.5 (0.9-6.3) for urinary frequency.

One year after delivery, one third of patients will present urinary incontinence and more than 50% will complain of bladder instability symptoms. Compared to spontaneous vaginal delivery, the use of Thierry's spatulas at first pregnancy does not induce higher risk of LUTS.