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Several anatomic theories suggest that lax uterosacral ligaments may result in apical prolapse and urinary incontinence. Therefore, prolapse repair such as cervicosacropexy or vaginosacropexy, may resolve urinary incontinence. Shortcomings in current treatment options endorse further exploration of the potential benefit of a surgical alternative. This systematically review of the literature aimed to summarize the evidence on the efficacy and safety of cervicosacropexy and vaginosacropexy as alternative surgical treatment options for urge and/or mixed urinary incontinence and apical prolapse. The PRISMA 2020 statement was followed and the review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42021267941). Studies from inception to 9/2021 were systematically reviewed and included. Data collection, risk of bias, and certainty of evidence were assessed using the standard Cochrane methods. The primary outcome measures were improvements in prolapse and urinary symptoms. Secondary outcomes included surgical safety and reintervention rates for complications and recurrence. The included studies showed a moderate-to-high risk of bias and low certainty of evidence. Owing to their heterogeneity, no meta-analysis was performed. Cure rates for mixed and urge urinary incontinence and apical prolapse were 47.5 % (CI95%:42.4-52.6), 73.8 % (CI95%:61.9-85.7) and 97-100 % respectively, at a mean follow-up of 9.7 ± 7.3 months. Additional incontinence surgery in 38.9 % (216/555) of women with initial urinary incontinence, and concomitant or subsequent surgery for prolapse was performed in 4.4 % (13/299). Cervicosacropexy or vaginosacropexy may remedy symptoms of urge and mixed urinary incontinence and seem to correct apical prolapse in the short term. Nevertheless, the overall level of evidence is low. Therefore, further clinical trials, integrated in the IDEAL framework, targeting better-identified patient selection, and using validated outcome measures are needed.

To assess whether COSingle-centre, sham-controlled, double-blind, randomised trial.A tertiary centre in Belgium.Sixty women with moderate to severe GSM symptoms.All participants eventually received three consecutive laser and three consecutive sham applications, either first laser followed by sham, or conversely.The primary outcome was the participant-reported change in severity of the MBS at 12 weeks. Secondary outcomes included subjective (patient satisfaction, sexual function, urinary function) and objective (pH, Vaginal Health Index Score, in vivo microscopy) measurements assessing the short-term effect and the longevity of treatment effects at 18 months after start of the therapy. Adverse events were reported at every visit.The MBS severity score decreased from 2.86 ± 0.35 to 2.17 ± 0.93 (-23.60%; 95% CI -36.10% to -11.10%) in women treated with laser compared with 2.90 ± 0.31 to 2.52 ± 0.78 (-13.20%; 95% CI -22.70% to -3.73%) in those receiving sham applications (p = 0.13). There were no serious adverse events reported up to 18 months.In women with GSM, the treatment response 12 weeks after laser application was comparable to that of sham applications. There were no obvious differences for secondary outcomes and no serious adverse events were reported.

Pregnancy and childbirth are considered risk factors for pelvic organ prolapse (POP). The long latency between obstetric events and morbidity hinders the establishment of cause-effect relationships. Recently, intermediate outcomes such as organ descent and levator avulsion (LA) have been identified. We aimed to assess the effect of obstetric events on symptoms and signs of POP and on LA. We systematically reviewed the literature by searching PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase and Cochrane Library. We included studies in women examining associations between obstetric events and symptoms and signs of POP and LA, assessed through questionnaires, clinical examination and pelvic floor imaging. Two reviewers evaluated the studies for eligibility and for methodological quality/susceptibility to bias. We extracted study results and clustered them by outcome: symptoms of POP (sPOP), clinical findings of POP (cPOP) and LA. When appropriate, we performed a random-effect meta-analysis and reported the summary odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals. Heterogeneity across studies was assessed using the I2 statistic. The first vaginal delivery was a risk factor for POP as measured by sPOP (OR: 2.65 [1.81–3.88]), cPOP (OR: 4.85 [2.15–10.94]) and in association with LA (OR: 41.6 [4.13– 419.41]). Forceps delivery was a risk factor for POP as measured by sPOP (OR: 2.51 [1.34–4.69]), cPOP (OR: 1.68 [1.21–2.34]) and in association with LA (OR: 5.92 [3.75–9.34]). Birth exclusively by caesarean was protective for sPOP (OR: 0.38 [0.29–0.51]) and for cPOP (OR: 0.29 [0.20–0.41]) and it did not confer any additional risk compared to nulliparity. This review confirms a strong aetiological link between vaginal birth and POP, with the first vaginal and forceps delivery being the main determinants.

Laparoscopy offers better exposure and surgical detail, avoids the need for excessive abdominal packing and bowel manipulation, next to reduced blood loss and lesser morbidity. It is therefore the ideal approach for pelvic floor procedures to treat urinary incontinence, pelvic organ, and rectal prolapse. The most commonly performed procedures are sacrocolpopexy, rectopexy, and colposuspension, which evolved from the stage of technical experimentation (1990s) and uncontrolled studies (early twenty-first century) to procedures for which today level I evidence is available that they provide equally good outcomes as their open counterparts. Offering a combination of incontinence, vaginal prolapse, and rectal surgery requires a multidisciplinary surgical team. The generic limitations of laparoscopy are its steep learning curve and long operation times, the limited number of degrees of freedom and its two-dimensional vision. Those limitations may in part or completely be overcome by a robotic approach, though there are no studies demonstrating a clinical benefit. Robotic surgery may shorten the learning curve for surgeons not familiar with “straight stick” laparoscopy, but remains expensive. This may change in the near future as more competitors will be on the market. Likewise, colposuspension may rekindle because of the negative advertisement for synthetic materials making patients ask for alternatives for mid-urethral slings.

Pregnancy and childbirth are considered risk factors for pelvic organ prolapse (POP). The long latency between obstetric events and morbidity hinders the establishment of cause-effect relationships. Recently, intermediate outcomes such as organ descent and levator avulsion (LA) have been identified. We aimed to assess the effect of obstetric events on symptoms and signs of POP and on LA.We systematically reviewed the literature by searching PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase and Cochrane Library. We included studies in women examining associations between obstetric events and symptoms and signs of POP and LA, assessed through questionnaires, clinical examination and pelvic floor imaging. Two reviewers evaluated the studies for eligibility and for methodological quality/susceptibility to bias. We extracted study results and clustered them by outcome: symptoms of POP (sPOP), clinical findings of POP (cPOP) and LA. When appropriate, we performed a random-effect meta-analysis and reported the summary odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals. Heterogeneity across studies was assessed using the IThe first vaginal delivery was a risk factor for POP as measured by sPOP (OR: 2.65 [1.81-3.88]), cPOP (OR: 4.85 [2.15-10.94]) and in association with LA (OR: 41.6 [4.13- 419.41]). Forceps delivery was a risk factor for POP as measured by sPOP (OR: 2.51 [1.34-4.69]), cPOP (OR: 1.68 [1.21-2.34]) and in association with LA (OR: 5.92 [3.75-9.34]). Birth exclusively by caesarean was protective for sPOP (OR: 0.38 [0.29-0.51]) and for cPOP (OR: 0.29 [0.20-0.41]) and it did not confer any additional risk compared to nulliparity.This review confirms a strong aetiological link between vaginal birth and POP, with the first vaginal and forceps delivery being the main determinants.

Background Laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy is the preferred procedure for restoring vaginal vault prolapse. An assistant uses a vaginal manipulator to position and tension the vault such that the surgeon can dissect the bladder, rectum and vault to eventually suture a synthetic mesh used to suspend the vagina to the longitudinal anterior vertebral ligament. Vaginal vault manipulation requires application of high forces for long periods of time. Methods This work quantifies the task by measuring and analyzing the interaction forces and the workspace during vaginal vault manipulation. From the measurements we developed a uniaxial model, expressing the increase in interaction force and stiffness of the vagina. By adapting the model parameters, the difference in interaction force and stiffness between moderate and severe prolapse is predicted. Findings For moderate prolapse the average interaction force and stiffness start at 2.56 N and 0.11 N mm−1 in the tensionfree state, and go up to 20.14 N and 0.53 N mm−1 after complete insertion of the instrument. For severe degrees of prolapse, tissue interaction is much lower starting at 1.68 N and 0.06 N mm−1 while staying limited to 12.20 N and 0.30 N mm−1 at full extension. Interpretation Population data shows that the stage of prolapse and total vaginal length increase with age and parity. The interaction force and stiffness of the vagina are correlated with this degree of prolapse. By adapting the model parameters a good estimation of the tissue interaction is found for patients with mild and severe prolapse.

Objective: To investigate the potential clinical use of serial fetal CPR measurements during the last month of pregnancy for the prediction of adverse perinatal outcome in unselected low-risk pregnancies. Methods: A multicenter prospective observational cohort study in 315 consecutively recruited low-risk pregnancies. All eligible pregnancies underwent serial sonographic evaluation of fetal weight and Doppler indices at two week intervals, from 36 weeks gestation until delivery. Data were converted into centiles correcting for gestational age. These data were not available for the obstetrical team and hence, could not influence management decisions. Primary outcomes were operative delivery for presumed fetal compromise and a composite neonatal outcome (arterial cord Ph < 7.20, Apgar scores at 5 minutes < 7 and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission). Neonates were categorized according to CPR values (90th centile). Results: Three hundred fifteen women were recruited in this study. We ecxluded 32 pregnancies because of small for gestational age babies (SGA), leaving 293 women and 583 CPR values for data-analysis. There were 85 (27%) adverse neonatal outcomes and 29 patients (9%) underwent operative delivery for presumed fetal compromise. Both primary and secondary outcomes were not significant different between the different CPR groups. Furthermore, we examined if individual serial CPR measurements could predict adverse outcome and found no linear correlation between repeated measurements of CPR and adverse outcomes. Conclusion: Our study shows that routine serial screening by CPR measurements provides poor prediction for adverse perinatal outcome in uncomplicated pregnancies.

The article by Zeitlin and colleagues reiterates the importance of prenatal interventions,1 in the form of timely transport to a level 3 unit and administration of antenatal …

Dear Editor, The study by de Leval et al. points to reassuring efficacy of the proposed modified technique with a shortened TVT-O tape [1]. However, concerning the effect on postoperative groin pain an important confounder has to be highlighted. The adjunct technique of no perforation of the obturator membrane by scissors and/or guide can contribute substantially to the findings of clinically significantly less postoperative groin pain. After all, this ‘no-touch technique’ can also be applied in the placement of the original TVT-O tape, as we have already been doing for 2 years. Due to different use of anaesthesia techniques it seems that groin pain at day 1 is the most accurate outcome to measure. As stated by the authors, a randomised trial with groin pain as primary outcome has to be awaited, preferentially with a comparison of the original versus the shortened TVT-O tape and using the same ‘no-touch technique’ for the placement of both tapes.