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Updated: Jun 26, 2026
Transvaginal Mesh Insertion in the Ovine Model
Published on: July 27, 2017
Trocar-guided transvaginal mesh repair of pelvic organ prolapse
Caroline Elmér1, Daniel Altman, Marie Ellström Engh
1From the Division of Surgery and Urology and Division of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Karolinska Institutet Danderyd Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Akershus University Hospital, University of Oslo, Lørenskog, Norway; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aarhus University Hospital, Skejby, Denmark; and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Jorvi Hospital, Espoo, Finland.
Objective:
To prospectively assess clinical outcomes after pelvic organ prolapse repair with a standardized trocar-guided surgical device using polypropylene mesh.
Methods:
This was a prospective multicenter cohort study performed throughout 26 clinics. Evaluation at baseline, 2 months, and 1 year after surgery included prolapse grading using the pelvic organ prolapse quantification system (POP-Q) and symptom assessment using the Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7) and Urogenital Distress Inventory (UDI-6). For the purpose of this study, postoperative POP-Q stage 0-I was considered anatomic cure.
Results:
Two-hundred sixty-one patients were included in the study; 232 (89%) attended the 1-year follow-up. Mean+/-standard deviation age at surgery was 66.3+/-9.4 years. Anatomic cure 1 year after surgery was observed in 96 of 121 women (79%) after anterior repair with mesh (P<.001), and 56 of 68 (82%) after posterior repair with mesh (P<.001). For combined anterior and posterior mesh repair, cure was 51 of 63 (81%) and 54 of 63 (86%) for the anterior and posterior compartment, respectively (P<.001 for both). Bladder and rectal perforations occurred in 9 of 252 patients (3.4%). Vaginal erosions, the majority mild to moderate, occurred in 26 of 232 cases (11%). Surgical intervention due to mesh exposure occurred in seven cases (2.8%). There were significant quality-of-life improvements in all domains of the IIQ-7. Despite significant improvements in UDI-6 scores, symptoms specific for stress urinary incontinence were not ameliorated.
Conclusion:
Trocar-guided transvaginal mesh surgery for pelvic organ prolapse is associated with satisfactory objective and subjective outcomes 1 year after surgery.
Clinical Trial Registration:
ClinicalTrials.gov, www.clinicaltrials.gov, NCT00402844
Level Of Evidence:
II.
