title: Abdominal sacral colpopexy: an independent prospective long-term follow-up study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of the study was to provide a long-term follow up of subjective and objective outcomes following sacral colpopexy.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cohort of 148 women who had undergone sacral colpopexy in a tertiary unit between 1998 and 2001 were contacted for follow-up. Women were questioned about current symptoms including patient determined subjective measures and the Baden-Walker site specific examination for vaginal prolapse was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ninety-three women were able to be contacted for review. Of these, 64 were available for clinical examination and a further 29 were available for telephone interview. Of those women examined 62 had good vault support. Therefore, recurrent vault prolapse was uncommon at 3%. Recurrent prolapse was present in other vaginal compartments in 40.6% of women. Subjectively 78% of women felt that their prolapse symptoms had resolved and 65% had a visual analogue score (VAS) >or= 80, indicating satisfaction with the surgery. Stress urinary incontinence symptoms decreased at this long-term review, however, 24% of women required further incontinence surgery.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Abdominal sacral colpopexy is an effective technique for the management of vaginal vault prolapse, with a two-year successful outcome in excess of 90%. Further study is required to investigate recurrent prolapse in other vaginal compartments and the functional aspects following surgery.
authors.affiliation: Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia. peta_higgs@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Peta
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Higgs
authors.forename: Judith
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Goh
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Krause
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sloane
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carey
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001315:Australia; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D013509:Gynecologic Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007813:Laparotomy / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013526:Surgical Mesh; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014596:Uterine Prolapse / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery*