Sphincteroplasty

Abstract

Fecal incontinence constitutes a severe social problem for the person afflicted and reduces quality of life considerably. A rising incidence has been described with increasing age, and it is estimated that about 1%-2% of a Western population suffer from severe fecal incontinence, defined as the involuntary loss of solid stool at least once a week. There is a variety factors that influence continence such as reduced sphincter strength, impaired sphincter integrity, short anal canal length, reduced stool consistency, reduced rectal compliance, reduced anorectal sensation, abnormal rectoanal inhibitory reflex, perineal descent, previous sphincter repair, and mental or congenital disorders.Fecal incontinence can be grouped according to its etiology: traumatic, neuropathic and congenital (Jorge and Wexner 1993). Only patients with a traumatic sphincter defect are candidates for a sphincteroplasty, most of them women after vaginal deliveries, and to a lesser extent patients after accidents or iatrogenic surgical sphincter injuries.