Tension-Free Vaginal Tape: A New Surgical Treatment of Female Urinary Stress Incontinence
M. Neuman, B. Zuckerman, M. Zilberman, A. Farkash, U. Beller
Division of Gynecologic Surgery and Oncology, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem
Female urinary stress incontinence diminishes the quality of life of about 5% of women. It is usually dealt with by surgery to correct the relaxed pelvic floor, the cause of the incontinence.
Tension-free vaginal tape is used in a newly described procedure. It consists of the vaginal introduction of a prolene needle-guided mid-urethral sling. The procedure is easy to perform under local anesthesia, recovery is rapid, and results are similar to those of other effective operations.
We report 44 patients who underwent this type of surgery. There were no significant complications. The early results were good and although the follow-up has been short, we believe that experience with this operation will play an important role in the treatment of urinary stress incontinence.