Comparison of TVT and TVT-O in patients with stress urinary incontinence: Short-term cure rates and factors influencing the outcome. A prospective randomised study

Abstract

Background: Recently, mid-urethral slings have been commonly used in treatment of patients with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Aims: To investigate tension-free vaginal tape (TVT) and tension-free obturator tape (TVT-O) for surgical treatment of SUI for cure rates (primary endpoint), complications and factors influencing cure rate (secondary endpoints). Methods: One-hundred and sixty-four patients were included in the study (n = 81 for TVT, n = 83 for TVT-O). The cure rates, complications, preoperative and postoperative urodynamic evaluation, Q-tip test, the Turkish version of Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7) and Urogenital Distress Inventory (UDI-6) scores were recorded. At three and 12 months, the patients were evaluated regarding outcome measures. Results: The cure rates were similar in TVT and TVT-O groups, 88.9% versus 86.7% respectively. Mean operative time was significantly shorter in TVT-O group (P = 0.001). The cure rate was significantly higher in both groups in patients with urethral hypermobility when compared with those with no hypermobility (P = 0.001). Conclusions: The TVT and TVT-O procedures appear to be equally effective for the treatment of SUI. Also, urethral hypermobility seems to be a factor influencing cure rate of mid-urethral slings.