Quality of life in relation to TVT procedure for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence.

Background: The aim of the study was to assess the impact of tension-free vaginal tape (TVT) procedure as anti-incontinence surgery on patients' urinary symptoms and quality of life.

Methods: Ninety-eight patients participated in the study. All patients were operated for urodynamic stress incontinence with the TVT procedure. Patients with prolapse more than first degree according to International Continence Society classification, previous anti-incontinence surgery, detrusor overactivity, or intrinsic sphincter deficiency were excluded from the study. Patients' quality of life assessment was performed with the use of the short form of Incontinence Impact Questionnaire and short form of Urinary Distress Inventory (UDI-6).

Results: Mean follow-up time was 12.4 +/- 4.2 months (range: 6-18 months). The cure rate for TVT procedure was 87.6%. There was a statistically significant improvement of quality of life postoperatively. In addition, the domains of UDI-6 concerning irritative symptoms and stress urinary incontinence symptoms showed statistically significant improvement postoperatively, while the domain concerning obstructive symptoms did not show statistically significant difference.

Conclusions: Tension-free vaginal tape procedure as anti-incontinence surgery significantly improves the quality of life in female patients with urodynamic stress incontinence.