Tension-free vaginal mesh for the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse in Chinese women

Objective To assess perioperative and short-term outcomes after tension-free vaginal mesh repair of pelvic organ prolapse in local Chinese women. Design Case series. Setting The urogynaecology unit of a university teaching hospital in Hong Kong. Patients All women with stage III or more pelvic organ prolapse who underwent tension-free vaginal mesh repair with or without vaginal hysterectomy from May 2007 to June 2011. Main outcome measures Perioperative and short-term outcomes. Results In all, 47 women underwent the procedure during the study period. The mean operating time was 94 minutes, the mean estimated blood loss was 163 mL, and the mean hospital stay was 4 days. Four patients had visceral injuries, all of which were identified and repaired during the operation; all four patients recovered uneventfully. The mean duration of follow-up was 25 (standard deviation, 13) months. Pelvic organ prolapse quantification improved significantly; nine (19%) of the patients had recurrent stage II prolapse but only one was symptomatic, six (13%) had postoperative mesh exposure, three of whom underwent mesh excision. There were five (11%) who had de-novo urodynamic stress incontinence, which was mostly mild and managed conservatively. Overall 91% (43/47) were satisfied with their operative outcome. Conclusions The success rate of tension-free vaginal mesh repair for the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse in local Chinese women was comparable to rates reported internationally. There was a high degree of subjective satisfaction with the procedure. There were low rates of mesh exposure and de-novo stress incontinence that was mostly asymptomatic or mild.