[Effect of needle suspension on continence mechanisms].

OBJECTIVE

To compare the separation in time of urethral and bladder pressure pulses and urodynamic parameters after successful and unsuccessful anterior colporrhaphy and needle suspension of the bladder neck in patients with stress urinary incontinence.

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective evaluation of urethral pressure profiles at rest and under stress in 10 successfully and 10 unsuccessfully operated patients.

RESULTS

In the successfully treated group, the onset of the urethral pressure increase preceded that of the bladder pressure by an average of 300 ms. Pressure transmission ratios in the 3 proximal quartiles of the urethra were significantly improved after successful surgery. Women who remained incontinent showed neither an advanced onset of the urethral pressure pulse during stress nor improved pressure transmission ratios.

CONCLUSION

Successful anterior repair and needle suspension of the bladder neck support the bladder neck and thus improve the pressure transmission to the urethra. Improved pressure transmission is associated with the finding that pressure increases in the urethra precede those in the bladder in continent women.