Laparoscopic Sacrocolpopexy: The Minimally Invasive Approach to Remedying Pelvic Organ Prolapse

As many as 68% of women suffer from pelvic organ prolapse in their lifetime. This condition can result from getting older, pregnancy, extreme physical exertion, surgery — such as a hysterectomy — and other reasons.

Organs in the pelvis can shift or drop if the tissues that support these organs get weak or become stretched. If this has happened to you, a laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy may be able to help you. With a laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy, a mesh graft is placed inside your body to help support your pelvic organs.

In this blog, the doctors at Southeast Urogyn explain what can cause a pelvic organ prolapse and how a laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy can help correct the condition.

Symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse

At the base of a woman’s abdominal cavity are the pubococcygeus muscles. If these muscles weaken or stretch, organs in the pelvis can sink into the vagina. There are several types of pelvic organ prolapse, and while each one has its own characteristics, they all can share some general symptoms, including the following: 

• Feelings of pressure or pain affecting the vagina and/or rectum
• Urinary or fecal incontinence
• Chronic constipation
• Inability to drain the bladder completely
• Tissue bulges in the vagina
• Painful intercourse or change in sexual sensation

Treating pelvic organ prolapse

If the pubococcygeus muscles no longer provide adequate support for the pelvic organs, the organs need to be held in place another way. A laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy can provide maximum support with minimal surgical impact.

The procedure involves connecting a surgical mesh from the vagina to the sacrum, or tailbone. In short, the mesh helps keep the pelvic organs in place so they no longer shift, drop, or make contact with the vagina. And, if necessary, the mesh can also help restore the vagina and cervix back to their normal positions. Additional mesh can be used to support urinary functions, too. 

The advantage of laparoscopy

In the past, open surgery required cutting muscle walls and other tissues not involved in the correction of a prolapse. This caused long recovery times, since these tissues often took longer to fully heal than the prolapse corrections.

With laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy, small incisions are made, thus reducing the recovery time and risk of infection. Furthermore, the advanced surgery allows for the use of cameras and special surgical tools. This enables the surgeon to get a complete view of the treatment area and make precise incisions.

And to top it off, laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy is usually performed as an outpatient procedure, so you won’t have an expensive hospital stay.

To learn more about laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy and to see if it could help you, book an appointment over the phone with Southeast Urogyn today.