Bloodless Outpatient Surgical Treatment of Rectocele and Cystocele under Local Anesthesia

Background: Surgical treatment of rectocele and cystocele is usually performed in a hospital setting under regional (spinal or epidural) or general anesthesia, and patients commonly have to stay in the hospital for at least one or two days. The possibility of performing the surgery under local anesthesia, as an outpatient procedure with minimal bleeding and pain, no surgical assistants, with immediate discharge and, most importantly, without compromising postoperative results, is appealing. To our knowledge, no studies have evaluated whether performing rectocele and/or cystocele rectocele repair under local infiltration anesthesia and without separation of the vaginal mucosa from the underlying fascia achieves these goals. Objective: The aim of this study is to describe a new surgical technique for outpatient treatment of cystocele and rectocele under local anesthesia, and our initial results. Materials and Methods: Forty women underwent outpatient surgical repair of rectocele and/or cystocele between April and September 2020 at the ambulatory procedure room of the authors’ clinics. The technique consists of a triangular-shaped CO2 laser vaporization or electrocauterization of the posterior and/or anterior vaginal epithelium, followed by plication of the edges of the triangle with 0 polygalactin suture. A perineorrhaphy was always performed concomitantly with rectocele repair, and a transobturator sling was performed in women presenting with concomitant stress urinary incontinence. Postoperative evaluation included POP-Q measurement for each patient six months after the procedure, and resolution of prolapse was considered when anterior and/or posterior vaginal wall presented as stage 0 or 1. Pre and postoperative POP-Q measurements were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: The mean operating time was 21 minutes (range: 14 - 38 minutes). All patients tolerated the procedure well and were discharged immediately afterwards. There were no intraoperative or postoperative complications, and all patients had satisfactory healing of the vaginal mucosa. Bleeding from the rectocele and/or cystocele repair was minimal, and nobody required extra-anesthesia or transfer to a hospital surgical theater. At six month follow-up, pre and postoperative POP-Q measurements of points Ap, Bp, Aa and Ba were all statistically significant (Ap 1.6 ± 1.2 × -2.4 ± 0.9, Bp 2.6 ± 1.6 × -2.7 ± 1.4, Aa 1.4 ± 1.1 × -2.3 ± 0.8, and Ba 2.4 ± 1.5 × -2.5 ± 1.2) respectively, revealing satisfactory resolution of both rectocele and cystocele. Conclusion: Our initial results suggest that rectocele and cystocele may be safely and effectively treated under local anesthesia in an outpatient setting using this new technique.

Vaginal Cystocele Cure at Bouake University Hospital (Chu): Anatomical and Functional Results

Background: Cystocele is an anatomical form of pelvic organ prolapse. It involves herniation of the bladder through the anterior wall of the vagina. Objectives: To report the anatomical and functional results of vaginal cure of cystocele in five cases. Patients and methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study of five patients presenting with a cystocele between January 2021 and December 2022 at the Urology Department of the Bouaké University Hospital (Côte d’Ivoire). All patients underwent vaginal cure of cystocele. The results of the operation were assessed on the basis of judgment criteria. The parameters studied were: age, marital status, profession, history, reason for consultation and outcome of the operation. Results: During the study period, five patients underwent vaginal cystocele surgery. The mean age was 46.6 years with extremes of 32 and 63 years. Three patients were married. All patients had a history of obstructed labour due to fetal macrosomia. 4 patients had grade II cystocele and one patient had grade III cystocele. All patients underwent anterior colpo-perineorrhaphy. The average operating time was 56 minutes (45 - 65 minutes). There was no morbidity. The average hospital stay was 3.6 days. The average duration of the urinary catheter was 2.2 days. At three months post-op, 4 patients had a good anatomical and functional result with a very good degree of satisfaction, compared with one patient who was moderately satisfied and had an average anatomical and functional result. At six months, all five patients had a good anatomical and functional result with a very good degree of satisfaction. Conclusion: Cure of cystoceles by the vaginal route is a technique that offers several advantages, especially the significant reduction in patient morbidity. Its anatomical and functional results demonstrate its reliability.

Clinical Presentation, Therapeutic Aspects and Results of Urogental Prolapse in Yaounde

Introduction: Urogenital prolapse is the descent of one or more elements of the abdominal-pelvic contents into the vaginal cavity. The anterior, middle and posterior anatomical compartments may be involved giving rise to several types of genital prolapse. However, there are various therapeutic modalities ranging from observational procedures to surgery. In Yaounde, urogenital prolapse appears to be a rare clinical entity, and its treatment has not been clearly stated. There is limited data about this subject in our context. Our aim was to study the clinical and therapeutic aspects of urogenital prolapse in Yaounde. Methods: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study with retrospective data collection at the Yaounde Gynaecological Obstetric and Pediatric Hospital (YGOPH) and the Yaounde Central Hospital (YCH) over a period of 05 months (from February 2022 to June 2022). All women aged ≥30 years and all women with documented urogenital prolapse admitted to the maternity and urology departments of these two health facilities were included. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS (statistical package for social sciences) software version 23.0 and the data were reported as mean, standard deviation, frequencies and percentages. Results: A total of 50 patients were recruited;the mean age was 45.8 ± 17 years. The age range was from 21 to 72 years. Majority of the patients were aged more than 55 years (32%). Most of the patients attended primary education (48%). Forty percent of the patients were housewives. The majority of the patients were from West Cameroon (26%). The most common reason for consultation was pelvic heaviness (54%). The most prevalent clinical sign was cystocele (56%), followed by hysterocele (54%). According to the Baden Walker classification, one-third of the patients were classified as first degree (36%). More than half (58%) of patients had the condition located at the first stage. Surgery was performed in 68% of cases while 48% received medical treatment. The average length of inpatient stay was 7.9 ± 3.7 days and the average length of transurethral catheterization was 3.02 ± 2.9 days. Most patients had a good short-term outcome, and the main postoperative complications were infection (8.8%) and hemorrhage (5.9%). Conclusion: Urogenital prolapse is a rare condition in our population. Diagnosis is essentially clinical. Cystocele and hysterocele are the predominant clinical forms. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment. Outcomes are satisfactory.

POPQ system and dynamic MRI in assessment of female genital prolapse

Aim: To assess the role of Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and pelvic organ prolapse quantification (POPQ) system in the evaluation of female pelvic organ prolapse. Design: Prospective study. Setting: TantaUniversityHospital. Patients: The study was carried out on 60 patients having clinical manifestations suggesting pelvic floor weakness. Intervention: All the patients were subjected to history taking, physical examination including POPQ, and pelvic MRI (static and dynamic) examination. Outcome measures: Quantitative measurements of genital prolapse. Results: All patients showed loss of the normal position of the perineal plate indicating generalized weakness of the whole pelvic floor muscles. Dynamic MRI exhibited pelvic floor abnormalities in 46 patients who did not show any abnormalities on the static images. Conclusion: Dynamic MRI is a helpful tool in defining the nature and quantitative measurements of pelvic organ prolapse. Also, MRI has and advantage over POPQ system in diagnosing lateral prolapse.

Female Stress Urinary Incontinence Treatment by Forming an Uretro-Vesical Angle with or without Mesh

Objective: To evaluate, in a comprehensive way, mesh and mesh free SUI treatment results obtained in a single center. The present study addresses the efficacy and safety of a novel surgical technique. Material & Methods: Adult female SUI patients, 184 in total, were divided within a sequential manner into two groups to be treated for SUI either with or without mesh insertion during a surgical intervention. In this novel procedure, a vertical vaginal incision from the urethra towards the bladder bottom is made and closed transversely. After the intervention the patients revisited the clinic at the 6th month. Results: 81 patients in mesh and 83 in the mesh free group completed the 2-year follow up. Based on the pad tests conducted at the end of 24-month follow up, 82% of the patients in the mesh free group and 85% in the mesh group were considered as successful if the pad test resulted with ≤2 gram. Cystocele of Grade I or II was also treated in 69 patients within the same single surgical procedure. Conclusion: The surgical outcomes of the mesh and mesh-free group were almost the same. However, though the cure rate of the mesh group was higher, it was not statistically significant. Adverse events were more frequent in the mesh group due to mesh presence.

Plasma Levels of Transforming Growth Factor-Beta 1 in Women with Pelvic Organ Prolapse

Objective: In women with pelvic organ prolapse (POP), decreased expression of transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) has been shown in POP tissues. However, no studies have evaluated plasma TGF-β1 levels in patients with POP, so it is unknown whether they are also changed or not. Therefore, we compared plasma TGF-β1 levels in women with and without POP. Methods: Participants were 49 women with POP and 23 healthy control women. All participants were postmenopausal. We measured plasma TGF-β1 and compared data between patients with POP and controls, and between patients with uterine prolapse (UP, n = 19) and those with a cystocele (CC, n = 30). In addition, in patients, we assessed the POP quantification system (POP-Q) stage. Results: Plasma TGF-β1 levels were significantly lower in patients than in healthy controls. POP-Q stage was not significantly different between the UP and CC subgroups, but POP-Q stage IV was diagnosed in 63% of patients with UP and 7% of those with CC. Plasma TGF-β1 levels were significantly lower in the CC subgroup than in the UP subgroup. Conclusion: Plasma TGF-β1 is decreased in POP. It remains unclear whether the lower levels indicate a reduction in systemic TGF-β1 activity, but they can be assumed to reflect reduced TGF-β1 expression in POP tissues.

Subjective and Objective Results of Native Anterior Vaginal Wall Repair in Local Anesthesia:A 10-Year Follow-Up

Introduction and Hypothesis: This follow-up study evaluates long-term subjective and objective outcome of native tissue anterior vaginal wall repair using local anesthesia. Methods: 72 women were operated. At 10-year follow-up anatomical results were evaluated by clinical examination. Furthermore, the women filled in a validated symptom and quality of life questionnaire. Results: Forty women (56%) completed the 10-year follow-up. Eighteen women (25%) had died within the ten-year follow-up period and fourteen women (19%) were lost to follow-up. Six (15%) of the women who came for follow-up had been reoperated for anterior vaginal wall prolapse within the 10-year follow-up period and were analysed as a separate group. Of the 40 women who came for the 10-year clinical examination none had stage 0 pelvic organ prolapse. Twenty (50%) women had stage 1, whereas, 13 (32%) had stage 2 and 1 (3%) had stage 3 pelvic organ prolapse. Ten years after surgery, 28 women (70%) had no bulge symptoms. Six (15%) of the women experienced bulge symptoms at the time of follow-up. Ten years postoperatively, 30 (75%) of the women in an overall quality of life assessment considered their condition improved after surgery. Conclusion: At 10-year follow-up 70% of women were relieved from their bulge symptoms and 75% still considered themselves better or much better than before the operation. However, 15% of women had been reoperated and 15% still experienced bulge symptoms.