Abdominal sling surgery--artificial sacro-uterine ligament.

Abdominal sling surgery is defined as attachment of either the connective tissue graft (fascia lata) or some synthetic material (Mersilene) to the anterior wall of the exposed vaginal vault following total hysterectomy or to the posterior wall of the uterine cervix in total and subtotal uterine prolapse, whereas the other end is attached to the anterior longitudinal ligament extending along the anterior surface of the vertebrae. Our analysis comprised 45 operations: 20 cases of vaginal vault prolapse following vaginal hysterectomy; 7 cases of vaginal vault prolapse following HTA: 2 cases of prolapse following subtotal hysterectomy; 3 cases of nondefined TH; 2 cases following Burch operation; 1 following Kocher; 1 following Manchester, 1 following Neugebauer-Le Fort operation in which HTA was performed 2 times. Abdominal sling operation was associated with the following surgical procedures: sling in 13 cases, sling + douglasorrhaphy in 16 cases, sling + douglasorrhaphy + colpoperineoplastics in 6 cases, sling + colpoperineoplastics in 9 cases and sling + marshall marcetti in 1 case. Recurrence of enterocele was recorded in 5 patients in whom closure of the douglas pouch had not been performed. This procedure was therefore later included into our approach to the operation. The abdominal sling operation has been a logical and physiologic approach to surgical therapy of genital prolapse, particularly of the vaginal vault prolapse following total hysterectomy. This operation ensures subsequent normal sexual relations.