Mini-invasive bloodless surgery of incontinence (inability to control the exude of urine)
In 2013 Medicus Alpha Clinic pioneered in Bulgaria the option for mini-invasive surgery with mono-sling for treatment of incontinence. Since then the team has been developing experientially and optimizing their practices, having helped hundreds of women to improve the quality of life and return to the normal habits of daily living.
Incontinence – the taboo topic
Incontinence is considerably frequent condition, however due to different factors, its distribution varies and the numerous studies report 5 % to 15 % of the population to experience it. Although women are by 3.5 times more frequently affected by this condition than men, it is a myth that incontinence is “women’s suffering”. This condition may have different forms of demonstration with each particular patient: whether incontinence is constant or caused by specific strain, what anatomic changes and specifics it refers to, etc. Many of the affected patients refrain from treatment because of the embarrassment from sharing the sensitive topic in asking for help. It is so important to be understood that incontinence is a fairly common condition that fortunately can be successfully treated.
Mono-sling plastic surgery – a sparing and highly effective method of treatment
It is a modern technique launched only a few years ago, and one of our leading specialists in urology, Dr. Rangel Starev, has been learning from the best European experts in this sphere, Prof. Giancarlo Paradisi, EAU Consultant for Incontinence. The plastic surgery is done in mini-invasive manner. The hospital stay is a day, and the full recovery of the fitness to work is attained within 2-3 days. The rate of successful mono-sling mini-invasive surgeries at Medicus Alpha Clinic is over 90 %. Two types of surgery are performed in the clinic:
- Treatment of stress incontinence – it is the exudation of urine at sneezing, coughing, laughing or lifting heavy objects. The most common causes are the hormonal changes of the menopause or gynecological surgeries employing hysterectomy. With mini-invasive mono-sling method a polypropylene sling prosthesis is introduced, which acts as an artificial sphincter. This surgery can be done with local anaesthesia. The therapeutic effect is sustainable and with over 80 % of women patients recover the urine continence within a month form the surgery, and over 90 % – after the second month from the surgery.
- Treatment of incontinence in combination with vaginal prolapse – this surgical solution is applied in cases where urinary incontinence is in combination with prolapse /sinking down/ of the vagina. What is different here, is the corrective system that is used – it is innovative and specifically designed for correction of pelvic prolapse.
The urinary incontinence in women in Bulgaria traditionally is treated with open surgery under full anaesthesia, and various types of corrections of the urethra and the bladder cervix are made. The post-surgery period is rather stressful for the patient, since she is required to lie in bed for 10 to 15 days in order to prevent possible failure of the surgical outcome. The worst disadvantage of this treatment is actually the low, 50 % rate of success, half of the patients still experience urinary incontinence or on the contrary – start to experience full continence of urine due to the mechanic correction of the bladder cervix angle, the properness of which depends entirely on the tactile skills of the operator.