Clinical application and mid-term results of modified vaginal closure: pelvic symptoms, quality of life, satisfaction, and regret rate

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of a modified vaginal closure in older women with severe pelvic organ prolapse (POP) with respect to symptoms, quality of life, postoperative satisfaction, regret rate, and complications METHODS:: From March, 2014 to December, 2016, in all, 32 women were enrolled in the study. All the participants underwent a modified vaginal closure. Records were reviewed to collect demographic characteristics and perioperative parameters. The Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory-short form 20 (PFDI-20) and the Short Form 36 Health Survey Profile (SF-36) were used to evaluate pelvic symptoms and self-perceived quality of life, respectively, 6 months postoperatively and at the latest follow-up. The Patient Global Impression of Change (PGI-C) was used to estimate the satisfaction. The satisfaction and regret rates were assessed at the latest follow-up. RESULTS: After an average follow-up period of 23 months (range 8-41 months), none of the 32 women experienced recurrence of prolapse that required reoperation. During follow-up, significant improvements were observed in the Pelvic Organ Prolapse Distress Inventory (POPDI-6), Urinary Distress Inventory (UDI-6), and SF-36 results (P < 0.001). However, the Colorectal-Anal Distress Inventory (CRADI-8) results did not improve significantly (P = 0.074). None of the participants regretted undergoing this procedure, and the PGI-C indicated a satisfaction rate of 93.8%. CONCLUSIONS: The modified vaginal closure showed a positive impact on POP and urinary symptoms, and consequently improved quality of life of the 32 participants. This procedure achieved a relatively high satisfaction rate and a low regret rate.