ReviewSexual medicine2017
A Meta-Analysis Detailing Overall Sexual Function and Orgasmic Function in Women Undergoing Midurethral Sling Surgery for Stress Incontinence.
Review in Sexual medicine, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 35 citations in OpenAlex.
- Quality of life and sexual function after tension-free vaginal tape and polyacrylamide hydrogel injection for primary stress urinary incontinence: 3-year follow-up from a randomized clinical trial.International urogynecology journal · 2023Trial
- Comment On "Somatic and Autonomic Nerve Density of the Urethra, Periurethral Tissue, and Anterior Vaginal Wall: An Immunohistochemical Study in Adult Female Cadavers".International urogynecology journal · 2026Article
- Sexual Function and Clitoral Anatomy after Vaginal Surgery with and without Midurethral Sling.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- [Pelvic floor reconstruction and sexual function].Urologie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2025Article
- Somatic and autonomic nerve density and distribution within the clitoris: an immunohistochemical study in adult female cadavers.International urogynecology journal · 2024Article
- Somatic and autonomic nerve density of the urethra, periurethral tissue, and anterior vaginal wall: an immunohistochemical study in adult female cadavers.International urogynecology journal · 2023Article
- Does the Polydimethylsiloxane Urethral Injection (MacroplastiqueMedicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2023Article
- Article
- Twenty-Five Years of the Midurethral Sling: Lessons Learned.International neurourology journal · 2022Article
- Female sexual function and quality of life after pelvic floor surgery: a prospective observational study.International urogynecology journal · 2021Observational
- Placement of mid-urethral mesh slings at the time of vaginal prolapse repair does not affect post-operative sexual function or orgasm.International urogynecology journal · 2021Article
- Search for the G spot: microvessel and nerve mapping of the paraurethral anterior vaginal wall.International urogynecology journal · 2020Article
- Sexual function after robot-assisted prolapse surgery: a prospective study.International urogynecology journal · 2018Article
- Editorial Comment: Effects of mesh surgery on sexual function in pelvic prolapse and urinary incontinence.International braz j urol : official journal of the Brazilian Society of UrologyArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionMore than 200,000 midurethral slings are placed yearly for stress urinary incontinence. Approximately 14% to 20% of women experience worsening sexual function overall after these procedures. We postulated that sling placement injures neural pathways regulating "female prostate" tissue within the anterior vaginal wall.
aimTo perform a meta-analysis for overall sexual function and orgasm using validated questionnaires for transvaginal tape, transobturator tape, and their variants.
methodsEffect sizes of preoperative and postoperative questionnaire scores for overall sexual function and orgasm were calculated. Random-effects models were selected for meta-analyses. Statistical analysis involved determination of the ratio of total heterogeneity to total variability.
main outcome measuresDifferences of overall sexual and orgasm functions were calculated by subtracting postoperative sling scores from preoperative sling scores. Forest plots of effect sizes were performed.
resultsSixty-seven percent of midurethral sling procedures analyzed showed no change or improvement in overall sexual function postoperatively, whereas 33% of studies analyzed for orgasm function showed improvement after the procedure. For transvaginal tape, mean total sexual function and orgasm postoperative scores were significantly higher than preoperative scores. For transobturator tape, mean total postoperative score was significantly higher than the preoperative score; however, the mean orgasm postoperative score was not significantly higher than the preoperative score, possibly because of variability in transobturator tape data.
conclusionThere is a discrepancy between postoperative sexual satisfaction and orgasmic function after midurethral sling surgery. Although overall sexual function remained the same or improved for most women, orgasmic function in only one third of cases improved overall, with most women experiencing no change or deterioration in orgasmic function. Dissection for, and placement of, the midurethral sling can compromise the neural integrity of the anterior vaginal wall, thereby detrimentally affecting the periurethral prostate tissue that is essential to the orgasmic response. We propose that this surgical procedure can compromise orgasmic function in some women. Szell N, Komisaruk B, Goldstein SW, et al. A Meta-Analysis Detailing Overall Sexual Function and Orgasmic Function in Women Undergoing Midurethral Sling Surgery for Stress Incontinence. Sex Med 2017;5:e84-e93.
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