A trial comparing the Stamey bladder neck suspension procedure with colposuspension for the treatment of stress incontinence. Comparative analysis of bladder neck suspension using Raz, Burch and transvaginal Burch procedures. A 3-year randomized prospective study. Burch colposuspension versus stamey endoscopic bladder neck suspension: a urodynamic appraisal. A prospective randomized trial comparing a modified needle suspension procedure with the vagina/obturator shelf procedure for genuine stress incontinence. Comparison of three different surgical procedures for genuine stress incontinence: prospective randomized study. Primary stress urinary incontinence and pelvic relaxation: prospective randomized comparison of three different operations.
Fifty-one women with urodynamically proven genuine stress incontinence were alternately allocated to either colposuspension or a Stamey-type bladder neck suspension. One year after operation 89% of the patients who had had a colposuspension were subjectively cured and 73% were objectively normal. In the Stamey procedure group these figures were 76 and 40% respectively. The Stamey procedure is a quicker, simpler and a lesser procedure but has a higher incidence of post-operative voiding difficulties and residual urge symptoms. Colposuspension is to be preferred for the younger, healthier patient. The Stamey procedure is useful in the elderly, obese or unfit patient or the patient who has had multiple previous surgical attempts at a cure. Ever since Pereyra described needle suspension of the bladder neck for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence in women, numerous modifications have been presented. There were variations in the success reported by different authors. We report 3-year follow-up results in 146 women operated on for stress urinary incontinence using Raz, Burch and our own new procedures.
                During a 5-year period, 146 women were operated on for genuine stress urinary incontinence. Using the method of Raz, and transvaginal Burch as well as the Burch retropubic urethropexy, a modified bladder neck suspension was performed in 46 (32%), 44 (30%) and 56 (38%) patients, respectively. In all patients a prior gynecological or urological operation for urinary incontinence and a clear neuropathic condition had been excluded before surgery. The routine diagnostic procedure consisted of multichannel cystometry, voiding cystourethrography, infusion urography and cystoscopy. A pressure-flow electromyography study was done in patients with a residual volume greater than 50 ml following voiding. The operations were performed by the same surgeon (I.G.). Initial follow-up was done after 12 months and then every year.
                Urodynamic testing did not reveal significant differences between Burch and Raz (p = 0.2652), Raz and transvaginal Burch (p = 0.5745) as well as between Burch and transvaginal Burch procedures (p = 0.7602; Fisher's exact test). Three years after surgery, 50 of 56 (89.3%; Burch procedure), 37 of 46 (80.4%; Raz modification) and 38 of 44 patients (86.4%; transvaginal Burch) were continent.
                There is no reason (except patient condition) to prefer any of the numerous modifications of bladder neck suspension. We believe that the success of the operation lies in adequate mobilization of the bladder neck and urethra as well as in a surgeon's familiarity with the procedure. A total of 51 consecutive female patients with genuine stress incontinence who underwent a Burch or Stamey operation were clinically and urodynamically evaluated preoperatively at least 8 months postoperatively. Our study group consisted of 27 women who underwent the Burch colposuspension and 24 who had the Stamey endoscopic bladder neck suspension. The urodynamic parameters which were studied pre- and postoperatively were the maximum flow rate (Qmax), the residual urine (Vres), the first sensation (FS), the bladder capacity (BC), the maximum vesical pressure (Pves max), the detrusor pressure at maximum flow (Pdet/Qmax), the functional urethral length (Lfun) and the maximum closure pressure (Pclos max). The successful results of the operations were 89% for Burch and 83% for the Stamey procedure. As for differing objective urodynamic findings, the Qmax, Pclos max, Vres and Lfun for both groups were the only parameters which showed statistically significant difference after surgery. The statistical comparison of the postoperative urodynamic parameters of the two operative techniques showed that Lfun, Pves max and Pclos max had difference in favor of Burch colposuspension. There were not statistical differences in the other studied parameters. In conclusion, according to the differentiation in the values of Pclos max, Lfun and Pves max, the Burch technique seems to result in a higher increase of patient's urethral resistance. To compare two procedures for the treatment of genuine stress incontinence in patients selected randomly.
                Fifty patients with proven genuine stress incontinence were randomized prospectively over a 3 year period to be treated either by a modified needle suspension (MNS) (n = 26) or by a vagina/obturator shelf (VOS) (n = 24) procedure.
                In patients who had not undergone previous surgery for incontinence, the VOS procedure was superior with 12 of 14 patients achieving continence compared with eight of 15 patients in the MNS group (P < 0.05). In women who had undergone previous surgery seven of 11 were continent following MNS compared with five of 10 after a VOS procedure. Both techniques had a much lower continence rate when compared with a classical colposuspension operation which was reported in a previous series.
                As a primary procedure VOS was more successful than MNS. In patients who had undergone previous surgery for incontinence neither procedure gave acceptable results. One hundred seven consecutive patients with clinical and urodynamic findings of genuine stress incontinence not previously treated were prospectively allocated in a randomized manner to one of three surgical procedures: anterior colporrhaphy, revised Pereyra procedure, or Burch retropubic urethropexy. Randomization included the surgical procedure and choice of surgeon (one of the three authors). Clinical and urodynamic evaluations were repeated at 3 months and 1 year after surgery. Differences in cure rates among the three procedures at the 3-month postoperative evaluation were insignificant (82%, 84%, and 92% for the anterior colporrhaphy, Pereyra, and Burch respectively) but became statistically significant at the 1 year postoperative evaluation (cure rates of 65%, 72%, and 91% for the anterior colporrhaphy, Pereyra, and Burch respectively, p less than 0.05). In our hands the Burch procedure stabilized the urethrovesical junction and prevented its descent during straining (evaluated by a postoperative Q-tip test) more effectively than either the Pereyra or anterior colporrhaphy. No procedure resulted in severe postoperative voiding difficulties. The present prospective randomized study demonstrates that in our hands the abdominal retropubic operation for genuine stress incontinence in patients not previously operated on results in a higher cure rate when compared with anterior colporrhaphy or Pereyra procedure. There were 289 women with clinical and urodynamic diagnosis of primary stress urinary incontinence, stable bladder, and pelvic relaxation who underwent a single-stage surgical procedure because of incontinence and pelvic relaxation. Patients underwent one of three surgical procedures because of stress incontinence--anterior colporrhaphy, revised Pereyra procedure, or Burch retropubic urethropexy. Decisions with regard to the type of bladder neck suspension and the surgeon were made randomly with a randomization table. Each patient had a complete clinical and urodynamic evaluation before surgery and at 3 and 12 months after surgery. Cure rate as defined by strict clinical and urodynamic criteria was not significantly different among the three groups at the 3-month postsurgical evaluations; however, at the 12-month postsurgical evaluations, the cure rate among women who underwent Burch urethropexy (n = 101) was significantly higher than that of either Pereyra or anterior colporrhaphy (cure rates were 87%, 70%, and 69%, respectively; p less than 0.01). The Burch urethropexy was more effective than the Pereyra procedure or anterior colporrhaphy in the stabilization of the bladder base and resulted in a significantly better cure rate in women with primary stress urinary incontinence and pelvic relaxation.
Bladder neck needle suspension surgery is probably not as good as open abdominal retropubic suspension for the treatment of primary and secondary urodynamic stress incontinence because the cure rates were lower in the trials reviewed. However, the reliability of the evidence was limited by poor quality and small trials. There was not enough information to comment on comparisons with suburethral sling operations. Although cure rates were similar after needle suspension compared with after anterior vaginal repair, the data were insufficient to be reliable and inadequate to compare morbidity.