Six-year follow-up in patients with urinary stress incontinence treated with Altis® single-incision sling: a prospective single-center study

Abstract

Objetives: Single incision slings are the latest generation of suburethral bands that seek to minimize morbidity and major complications of transobturator bands. In short and medium term, their results in terms of success and safety are similar to transobturator and retropubic bands. Nevertheless, there is little data on their long-term outcomes. Our objective was to evaluate safety and efficacy of Altis® mini-sling during the short, medium and long-term follow-up. Methods: Prospective observational study in 67 women who underwent surgery with Altis® for a period of 6 years (2013-2019). The main variables evaluated were: total continence, objective cure and subjective cure (satisfaction). The secondary variables studied were: complications and number of pads used per day after surgery. Statistics: Student t-test or U-Mann-Whitney for quantitative variables, Chi-Square for categorical variables. Results: Objective cure rates were: 96.77%, 87.04%, 87.50%, 85.71%, 76.92% and 50% (from 1 to 6years), and total continence: 85.48%, 72.22%, 64.88%, 50%, 46.15% and 50% (from 1 to 6years). Degree of satisfaction was: 9, 8.2, 8.3, 7.7, 7.6 and 6.5 points (from 1 to 6years). 30 patients (44.78%) had some type of complication and the most common were: “de novo” urinary urgency (20.90%), recurrence of stress urinary incontinence (14.93%) and pain (5.97%). Conclusion: Altis® presents high rates of objective and subjective continence in short and medium-term (1-5years), during 6-year follow-up. It is safe and does not associate severe complications. We found a high percentage of “de novo” urgency and recurrence of stress urinary incontinence, especially after the fifth year.