Comparison Between Anterior-Apical Mesh (Surelift) and Anterior Mesh (Surelift-A) in Transvaginal Pelvic Organ Prolapse Surgery: Surgical and Functional Outcomes at 1-Year Follow-Up.

Introduction and hypothesis: Surelift is a transvaginal synthetic mesh (TVM) kit that is intended to treat anterior and apical pelvic organ prolapse (POP). The kit can be configured to use an anterior-apical (Surelift) or anterior (Surelift A) approach. The aims of this study were to evaluate the short-term objective and subjective outcomes of the different approaches at the 1-year follow-up.

Methods: From June 2018 to April 2021, a total of 280 patients with symptomatic advanced POP (stages III and IV) had surgery with the Surelift or Surelift A. The primary outcome was postoperative de novo stress urinary incontinence (SUI), as well as subjective evaluation based on the Urinary Distress Inventory 6 (question 3 score > 1) and Incontinence Impact Questionnaire 7, during the 1-year follow-up period. Secondary outcomes measured quality of life, the presence of lower urinary tract symptoms, and complications.

Results: In total, 265 patients were assessed. Among these, 137 had Surelift, whereas 128 underwent Surelift A with SSF. At 1-year postoperative follow-up, de novo urodynamic stress incontinence occurred more frequently in the Surelift group than in the Surelift-A group (28.8% vs 9.1% respectively, p = 0.012). Additionally, Surelift patients had a higher rate of de novo SUI than Surelift A (33.2 vs 11.4 respectively, p = 0.013). Both study groups experienced improvements in their quality of life indicators.

Conclusions: The Surelift device is a safe and effective technique of treating advanced-stage POP. De novo urine incontinence appears to be more common in the Surelift group than in the Surelift-A group. We found good anatomical outcomes and subjective relief in both study groups, with a low complication rate.