Surgical correction of anal incontinence.

Seventy-six operative procedures for anal incontinence performed at the Lahey Clinic Medical Center between 1964 and 1985 were reviewed. Etiologic factors, findings on preoperative physical examination, and functional results are reported for 61 procedures in the four categories of simple anterior reefing, anterior reefing with perineal body reconstruction and anoplasty skin closure, posterior proctopexy, and Dacron Silastic sling insertion. In women with anterior sphincter defects, combining anoplasty skin closure and deep external sphincter plication gives superior functional results over superficial reefing, especially when there is attenuation of the rectovaginal septum and perineal body. The posterior proctopexy is most useful in patients with intact external sphincters and incontinence without recognizable cause or after abdominal repair of rectal prolapse.