title: Sonographic evaluation of anatomic results after the pubovaginal sling procedure for stress urinary incontinence.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the anatomic changes after the pubovaginal sling procedure in women with stress urinary incontinence by transrectal sonography
  
  
  METHODS
  This study enrolled 56 women with varying types of stress urinary incontinence who were treated with the pubovaginal sling procedure using self-fashioned polypropylene mesh. The suburethral sling was fixed without tension and was placed at the position between the bladder neck and the proximal urethra. The patients were investigated preoperatively and postoperatively by transrectal sonography of the bladder and urethra.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At a median follow-up of 24 months (range, 6-39 months), 48 patients (85.7%) were cured, 6 (10.7%) had improved, and 2 (3.6%) had treatment failures. Transrectal sonography revealed a well-suspended bladder neck and proximal urethra in all patients who were cured. As measured by changes of the axis of the pubovesical ligament, the position of the bladder neck was elevated by a mean of 29.6 +/- 21.5 degrees in the resting condition and 47.4 +/- 27.7 degrees in the straining condition. An incompetent bladder neck and proximal urethra were noted in 8 patients who had stress urinary incontinence after surgery. The incidence of opening of the bladder neck was 84.6% in 13 patients with de novo urgency or urge incontinence, whereas only 2 (4.7%) of 43 patients who did not have postoperative urgency had opening of the neck (P = .000).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Transrectal sonography provides useful information about anatomic changes after the pubovaginal sling procedure. Bladder neck incompetence after surgery was closely related to postoperative urgency or urge incontinence.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital, Hualien, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Kuo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014463:Ultrasonography; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D014550:Urinary Incontinence, Stress / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D014551:Urinary Tract / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D013520:Urologic Surgical Procedures