Are male slings for post-prostatectomy incontinence a valid option?

Stress incontinence in men is still a common problem after surgical treatment of prostatic disease. This article reviews the techniques and results of recently described surgical slings available to treat male stress incontinence.

Medium-term follow-up (mean 3-4 years) of patients treated with bone-anchored slings has been recently published, suggesting a success rate (cured or improved) of 70-80%. Short-term follow-up (mean of 6-12 months) of transobturator retrourethral slings demonstrates a success rate of 62-83%. Novel sling designs include mechanisms to manipulate the tension postoperatively and inside-out transobturator trocar passage. Common complications associated with slings are acute urinary retention and perineal pain. Rare complications include urethral erosion and infection. Retropubic approaches are associated with a risk of bladder perforation.

Male slings are a valid option for treating male stress incontinence, and do offer several advantages over the artificial urinary sphincter. However, long-term data and multicenter series are needed in order to compare directly with the artificial urinary sphincter.