Improvement in Psycho-social and Sexual Health of a Women after Treatment of Stress Urinary Incontinence: A Patient Reported Outcome Study

Introduction: Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in women has an estimated prevalence of 12% to 46%. Incontinence significantly affects women’s psychosocial behavior and sexual function, leading to feelings of low self-esteem, low self-confidence, increased social withdrawal, ultimately reducing their quality of life. Trans-Obturator Tape (TOT) is an established procedure to treat SUI with success rates ranging from 62% to 98%. The objective of this study was to record patient reported outcomes on psycho-social and sexual health after TOT procedures in females with SUI. Methods: We followed up all the patients who underwent TOT procedure for SUI between January 2009 and December 2018 and assessed their psycho-social and sexual health using the quality of life questionnaire and compared it to their preoperative scores. Results: The mean age of our cohort was 44 years (range 34-62) and mean BMI was 29 kg/m2 (range 20-34). 39.1%, 47.8% and 13% cases were of Grade 1, 2 and 3 SUI respectively. The cure rate in our patients was 100% with a median follow up period of 74 months (3-122 months). There was improvement in the psycho-social behavior in all patients as observed on quality of life subscale `Psychosocial Impact’ (p<0.001). The questionnaire also revealed complete alleviation from sexual concerns after operation in all patients (p<0.001). Conclusions: Trans-obturator tape is an effective minimally invasive treatment for SUI, it elevates the overall persona of women, enabling them to work, involve in sexual and social activities within a short span of time.

Author(s): Abhijit Musale

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