Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of urinary symptoms at long-term follow-up after vaginal hysterectomy.
Study design: One hundred seventeen patients who had a vaginal hysterectomy for menorrhagia from January 1991 to December 2001 answered a self-report questionnaire about de novo urinary symptoms. The control group was a population of 116 patients who had a conservative treatment for dysfunctional uterine bleeding by endometrial thermocoagulation from January 1994 to December 2001.
Results: Patient characteristics (mean age, mean parity, menopausal status, smoking status, drink habits) were similar in the 2 groups. Mean follow-up was 4.6+/-2.2 years (range, 1.5-11 years) after vaginal hysterectomy and 4+/-1.8 years (range, 1.5-7 years) after conservative treatment. The prevalence of urinary symptoms, which included urge and stress incontinence, was statistically similar in the 2 groups.
Conclusion: This study reveals no risk of urge or stress urinary incontinence at long-term follow-up after vaginal hysterectomy, compared with conservative treatment.