Improvement of quality of life, anxiety and depression after surgery in patients with stress urinary incontinence: Results of a longitudinal short-term follow-up

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to compare the effect of incontinence surgery and pelvic floor training on quality of life (QOL), anxiety and depression in patients with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). METHODS In a prospective longitudinal study, females with proven SUI were asked to complete a set of standardized questionnaires (sociodemographic data sheet, FACT-G, I-QOL, HADS) before and eight weeks after treatment. The comparison groups consisted of a surgical treatment group and a conservative group that underwent supervised pelvic floor training for eight weeks. RESULTS From the 67 female patients included in the study a number of 53 patients completed both assessment time points (mean age 57.4, mean years of SUI 7.6). The surgical treatment group consisted of 32 patients of which 21 patients received a modified Burch colposuspension and 11 patients a tension-free mid-urethral tape suspension. The 21 patients in the conservative group attended eight once-weekly supervised pelvic floor training sessions. After treatment the surgical intervention group showed a significantly higher improvement of QOL (FACT-G and I-QOL) and anxiety (HADS) than the pelvic floor training group. CONCLUSION For female patients with SUI surgery yielded a better outcome than pelvic floor training with regard to quality of life and anxiety.