A Thorough Guide to Pelvic Reconstructive Surgery

Pelvic reconstructive surgery is performed on women for treating pelvic organ prolapse (POP). This occurs when the internal structure of a woman’s body is not able to support the internal organs in their normal position.

So, the organs such as bowel, uterus and bladder become so weak that they get displaced from their usual position and tend to bulge into the vagina. The condition is known as prolapse.

POP is not a life threatening condition but it can lead to a lot of pain in the pelvis, problems in the normal sexual, urinary and excretory functions. This brings down the quality of life to a considerable degree. Pelvic reconstructive surgery is a complex process that can involve removal of some organs or tissues in the woman’s pelvis, in an effort to make her body more functional. One of the procedures involved in the surgery is resectioning the problematic areas in the body and reorganising the tissues and organs. Surgeons generally aim to make the patient’s life easier by getting rid of the pain in the pelvis or making it bearable.

The surgery for the repair of pelvis can be performed via abdomen or through the vagina. It can be:

• Using stitches.
• Through introduction of surgical mesh to improve the chances of repair and make the anatomy as close to being normal as possible.

The FDA issued safety communication about the use of the mesh for surgery because of the increasing concerns about the risk associated with its transvaginal placement. FDA has also conducted a review of the scientific studies published on the use of mesh from 1996 to 2008. The conclusion of this review is that there are a many risks associated with the use of mesh as compared to the stitches. Although it was conceded that mesh helps to improve the anatomy a lot better, there was no clinical benefit that one could derive out of it when compared with surgeries that did not involve the use of mesh.

FDA has recommended that POP patients should:

• Ask the surgeon to give a strong reason if he is using the surgery that involves mesh, after giving all the details about the surgeries that can be performed.
• Get regular check-ups after the surgery. Any complication experienced such as vaginal discharge or bleeding should be immediately communicated to the doctor.
• If you are one of the patients who have had pelvic reconstructive surgery but do not know whether mesh or non-mesh method was used, ask your doctor to tell you in the next check-up visit.

Read more articles on Womens Health