NEW TECHNIQUE FOR CORRECTING BOTH INCONTINENCE AND CYSTOCELE: T.I.C.T. (TENSION-FREE INCONTINENCE CYSTOCELE TREATMENT)

The purpose of this retrospective study is to evaluate the safety and the efficacy of a new surgical procedure for correcting both incontinence and cystocele. This method of Tension-free Incontinence Cystocele Treatment (T.I.C.T.) consists in using a polypropylene fly shaped mesh made up of a central body (positioned under both the urethra and the bladder) and two wings (which cross the Retzius and reach the suprapubic area after being pulled up with a modified Stamey needle, under digital control). Seventy patients with stress urinary incontinence and severe cystocele underwent the T.I.C.T. procedure. Their mean age was 56 years (range 40-78), the average follow up was 18 months (range 2-36 months). The objective cure rate was 90% for incontinence and 94.3% for cystocele. No intra-operative complications occurred. Postoperative complications included 2 cases (3%) of voiding difficulty, one case of de novo instability, and one case of erosion and granuloma. Neither bladder perforation nor vascular damage was found. These data show the low risks and the good results of this treatment.