Should i have bladder surgery

I've been trying to cope with this problem for years. I've tried a lot of different things, even a pessary for a while. But my condition isn't getting better. It might even be getting worse. I think surgery could help me. I have five grown children and 12 grandchildren.

I'm proud of how fit and active I am. My biggest problem is that often I really have to urinate and I can't. I've found ways to manage, though, by putting my fingers in my vagina and pressing on my bladder. It's not the greatest solution but I think I'd like to keep on the way I have for a while longer.

Surgery is still an option for me, but I'm not going to choose it now. Your personal feelings are just as important as the medical facts. Think about what matters most to you in this decision, and show how you feel about the following statements. My symptoms aren't that bad. They don't get in the way of my daily life. Resting and being less active for 3 months after surgery won't be a problem for me. I can't rest and be less active for 3 months while I recover from surgery.

Now that you've thought about the facts and your feelings, you may have a general idea of where you stand on this decision. Show which way you are leaning right now.

How sure do you feel right now about your decision? Here's a record of your answers. You can use it to talk with your doctor or loved ones about your decision. I should have surgery only if the prolapse is affecting my daily life and my doctor thinks surgery will help. Getting surgery is the only way to relieve my symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse. I may need to have surgery more than once for my pelvic organ prolapse. Are you clear about which benefits and side effects matter most to you?

Do you have enough support and advice from others to make a choice? Author: Healthwise Staff. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. Learn how we develop our content. To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise.

Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. Updated visitor guidelines. Get the facts. Your options Have surgery for pelvic organ prolapse. Manage your symptoms for now without surgery. Key points to remember Many women have only mild symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse. Surgery is usually done only when the prolapse affects your daily life and your doctor thinks surgery will help.

The type of surgery you have will depend on which organs have prolapsed. Consider surgery if the prolapse is causing pain, if you are having problems with your bladder and bowels, or if the prolapse is making it hard for you to do activities you enjoy. An organ can prolapse again after surgery. Surgery in one part of your pelvis can make a prolapse in another part worse.

This may mean that you will need to have another surgery later. You might be able to relieve some symptoms on your own without surgery. You can do exercises at home that make your pelvic muscles stronger.

If you choose, your doctor can fit you with a device called a pessary. It's a removable device that fits in your vagina and holds your pelvic organs in place. What is pelvic organ prolapse? Other organs that can be involved when you have pelvic prolapse include your: Urethra. Small bowel. Consider surgery if: The prolapse causes pain. You have problems with your bladder and bowels. The prolapse makes it hard for you to do activities you enjoy.

What kinds of surgery are done for pelvic organ prolapse? Types of surgery include: Repair of the vaginal wall vaginal vault prolapse surgery. Repair of the bladder cystocele surgery or urethra urethrocele surgery. Repair of the rectum rectocele surgery or small bowel enterocele surgery. Surgery to close the vagina vaginal obliteration. This surgery is only an option if you no longer want to have sexual intercourse. Removal of the uterus hysterectomy.

During a hysterectomy, the surgeon removes the uterus. After surgery, you will likely be able to return to your normal activities in about 6 weeks. What are the risks of surgery for pelvic organ prolapse? Problems you may have after surgery can include: Trouble controlling your bladder incontinence. Not being able to empty your bladder. Pain during sex.

Bladder injury. A hole or opening that forms between two organs in your body, or between your body and your skin. This is called a fistula. What are your other choices besides surgery? You may be able to relieve some symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse on your own. Try exercises called Kegels to make your pelvic muscles stronger. Eat foods that are high in fiber to avoid constipation and straining when you have a bowel movement.

Reach and stay at a healthy weight, since more weight puts pressure on your pelvic muscles. Urinary diversion surgery is used to make the urine flow from the bladder to the intestine pouch that has been created to hold urine. The surgeon uses pieces of intestine or stomach to create an artificial bladder. When the new pouch is in place, the ureters are sewn to it.

Then another piece of the intestine is used for the creation of a tube. This goes from the pouch to stoma, which is an abdominal opening. Another method is to sew the pouch to urethra instead. Urinary diversion surgery can be of two types - incontinent diversion surgery or continent diversion surgery. In incontinent urinary diversion surgery, the urine comes out of the stoma immediately as it is made.

The stoma is attached to a bag which is placed outside the body and is used to hold the urine. You need to empty the bag when it is filled with urine. In continent urinary diversion, a pouch is created with the intestine, and one end of it is attached to the stoma. At the opening, a one-way valve is created which enables you to put a catheter so you can then drain the urine that is stored in the stoma.

There are some additional complications that can occur later when you have urinary diversion surgery. Urinary diversion can cause parastomal hernia. Another complication is that it can become difficult for the urine to drain if the skin around the stoma becomes narrow. This can cause difficulty for urine draining with the help of a catheter.

The tube that is attached to the kidney can be shut due to scar tissue as a result of urinary diversion surgery. This can cause other complications to arise. Transurethral resection surgery involves using a resectoscope. A resectoscope is a thin and rigid cystoscope that comes built with a loop made of wire on one end.

The resectoscope is put through the urethra into your bladder, and any tissues that seem abnormal are removed with it. Tumours are removed similarly with a resectoscope.

These are then sent for testing to confirm if it is cancer or not. If the abnormal tissue or tumour is cancerous, then fulguration can take place whereby the area of the abnormal tissue or tumour is burned away.

Another method is to use a laser to destroy the cancer cells in the area. There are two types of cystectomy - partial cystectomy and radical cystectomy. Partial cystectomy is when the cancer is not that large is only present in one location. There is a hole that is made in the wall of the bladder. When the cancer is removed, it is closed with stitches. In this surgery, lymph nodes which are found nearby can be removed to ensure the cancer has not spread to them.

When you have this surgery, reconstructive surgery is not required since the entire bladder is not being removed.

In a radical cystectomy, the entire bladder is removed during surgery with the help of an incision in the abdomen. Else, laparoscopic surgery can be done, which means fewer incisions and scars. Radical cystectomy is done when the cancer is large, or it is present in several parts of the bladder. Lymph nodes are removed along with the bladder. In women, the uterus, ovaries, a part of the vagina, fallopian tubes, and cervix are removed too. In men, seminal vesicles and prostate are removed during radical cystectomy.

Reconstructive surgery needs to be done after radical cystectomy. In this type of surgery, the cancerous bladder is first removed. This can be done with the help of robotic surgery or laparoscopic approach. Else, another way is to use a traditional abdominal incision to remove the cancerous bladder. Then a section from the colon, small intestine, or both is used to create a neobladder.

This neobladder is placed in the location of your original bladder. The ureter is then connected to the neobladder on one end and on the other, the urethra is connected to the neobladder. This lets the neobladder function as your new bladder. The urine can now be stored in this neobladder. There are several types of bladder suspension surgery and how they are performed depends on the particular surgery method.

The needle bladder neck suspension surgery is performed through the vagina or abdomen. The sling surgery is done using fascia, which means your body tissue taken from the wall of the abdomen.

You can use donated tissue as well. In a sling surgery, a man-made material can be used instead. This is used for supporting the bladder neck which is sagging and it supports the urethra too. Open retropubic suspension surgery consists of making an incision in the stomach area. Your surgeon first locates the bladder after making an incision, and then he pulls the neck of the bladder. He then sews it to the tissue or bone that surrounds it to keep it in place.

The bladder neck is sewn with the help of sutures. In laparoscopic retropubic suspension surgery, smaller incisions are made as compared to open retropubic suspension surgery.

The healing times may be much faster, as well. You may need to stay in the hospital for up to 10 days after bladder augmentation surgery. It can take you up to 4 months to recover completely from the surgery.

Most people are cured with this surgery. When you get cystectomy done, you might need to stay in the hospital for about a week. When you get bladder suspension surgery done, then it depends on the specific method used to perform surgery. Some procedures can be done as an outpatient. Any bladder surgery that is done by making an incision through the abdomen takes more time to recover when compared to procedures done through the vagina.

You should avoid strenuous activities such as lifting a lot of weight and doing intense workouts for a month or two after your bladder surgery. It is best to avoid sex for at least a month after bladder surgery. You might need at least a month to resume normal daily activities. In this period, you should avoid driving. You might need to take leave from your work to heal and recover.

Bathing is also not a good idea for a few weeks after surgery. Women should avoid using tampons for at least six weeks after surgery. Vaginal douches should not be used during this period either. Precautions will specifically depend on the bladder surgery that you go through.

Hence, speak to your doctor about what you can safely do and what you should avoid after bladder surgery. Recovery takes time with any bladder surgery, and so you should take time off to heal and recover well. You should try not to put any stress on the bladder area.

For women, they should stop doing any activity that puts pressure on the vaginal area too. You should be mindful of how you perform daily activities to ensure you are not putting unnecessary pressure in your abdomen region.

Will I experience change in sex life as a result of cystectomy? Yes, there are chances. Cystectomy affects men and women differently. Women might find it difficult to have sex because it makes them feel because any changes in the vagina can make them feel discomfort during intercourse.

Some women cannot have an orgasm if nerve damage has occurred. For men, they can experience difficulty in having erections, although improvement can be seen over time. For people who have a stoma pouch, you should empty the pouch before you engage in intercourse. You can ask about nerve-sparing techniques with your doctor.

Later, you can have the stimulator implanted if it substantially improves your symptoms. Surgery to implant the stimulator is an outpatient procedure done in an operating room under local anesthesia and mild sedation. Your doctor can adjust the level of stimulation with a hand-held programmer, and you also have a control to use for adjustments. Tibial nerve stimulation. In this procedure, a needle placed through the skin near your ankle sends electrical stimulation from a nerve in your leg tibial nerve to your spine, where it connects with the nerves that control the bladder.

Tibial nerve stimulation takes place over 12 weekly sessions, each lasting about 30 minutes. Based on your response to the treatment, your doctor might recommend follow-up sessions at regular intervals to maintain the results. Finding an effective remedy for urinary incontinence might take time, with several steps along the way. If a conservative treatment isn't working for you, ask your doctor if there might be another solution to your problem.

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A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. This content does not have an English version. This content does not have an Arabic version. See more conditions. Urinary incontinence surgery in women: The next step. Products and services. Urinary incontinence surgery in women: The next step If you have severe symptoms of stress urinary incontinence or overactive bladder, surgery may provide a permanent solution to your problems.

By Mayo Clinic Staff. Open pop-up dialog box Close. Sling procedures A sling is a piece of human or animal tissue or a synthetic tape that a surgeon places to support the bladder neck and urethra.

Bladder neck suspension Bladder neck suspension adds support to the bladder neck and urethra, reducing the risk of stress incontinence. Sacral nerve stimulator During sacral nerve stimulation, a surgically implanted device delivers electrical impulses to the nerves that regulate bladder activity sacral nerves.

Thank you for Subscribing Our Housecall e-newsletter will keep you up-to-date on the latest health information. Please try again. Something went wrong on our side, please try again. Show references Jelovsek JE, et al. Stress urinary incontinence in women: Choosing a primary surgical procedure.