GENITAL PROLAPSE IN WOMEN TREATED SUCCESSFULLY AND UNSUCCESSFULLY BY THE BURCH COLPOSUSPENSION

Objective. The aim of the study was to determine the correlation betwe en genital prolapse and the outcome of the Burch colposuspension. Mate rial and methods. Fifty women with objectively proven recurrent incont inence after Burch colposuspension and 31 women, objectively continent after the colposuspension, were clinically examined with emphasis on genital prolapse. The preoperative vaginal profile of the women was es timated from the patient records. Results. The preoperative vaginal pr ofile demonstrated no significant differences in occurrence of prolaps e components between the women who were continent after the colposuspe nsion and those women who had recurrent incontinence. At the follow-up , rectocele and cystocele occurred with significantly higher frequenci es among the women with recurrent urinary incontinence than among the women who were continent after the Burch colposuspension (80% and 46% vs. 42% and 10%o; p<0.01). Enterocele and uterine/vaginal vault descen t occurred in equal frequencies in the two groups. Independent of the outcome of the colposuspension, the women with rectocele were signific antly younger than the women without rectocele (55 years vs. 63.5 year s; p<0.01). Conclusions. The results imply an association between the occurrence of rectocele and cystocele and the outcome of the colposusp ension. Different etiologies seem to exist for rectocele/cystocele, co mpared to enterocele or uterine/vaginal vault descent formation in wom en with stress urinary incontinence, operated upon with the Burch colp osuspension.