Suburethral sling release.

BACKGROUND: The suburethral sling is an effective surgical procedure for curing genuine stress incontinence. However, a well-known complication is urinary retention. This report describes a method of modifying sling placement 6 weeks after the initial surgery to ameliorate the complication of urinary retention. CASE: A 68-year-old woman had undergone suburethral sling placement as part of her pelvic reconstructive surgery. Preoperatively, she had objective, urodynamic evidence of severe genuine stress incontinence, consistent with intrinsic sphincter deficiency. She was unable to void for 6 weeks postoperatively, at which time this procedure was offered. After an uneventful suburethral sling release, the patient had immediate return of voiding function, and symptoms resolved over the next 2 weeks.
CONCLUSION: This procedure may be a useful alternative to sling removal in cases of persistent urinary retention after placement of a suburethral sling.