Urinary incontinence, which is defined as any involuntary loss of urine, represents a public health problem due to its high prevalence, and although it does not represent a health risk, it affects the psychological, physical and social quality of life of those who suffer from it. who are mostly women.
Internationally, it has been detected that it affects up to 45% of women, with a higher proportion in those over 60 years of age. In this context, incontinence can be treated with lifestyle changes, physical exercise, medications and even surgery. But in some cases, traditional surgeries are not indicated for all patients.
Within the framework of a plan to improve services for patients with prolapses and complex incontinence, the Dr. Gustavo Fricke Hospital was the first regional public hospital to incorporate the installation of a permanent, non-resorbable hydrogel, which allows controlling stress incontinence. , which occurs when movement or physical activity puts pressure on the bladder.
The first patient in the region
Thus, a 58-year-old patient from Puchuncaví, a survivor of uterine cancer, was the first to access this new benefit, after spending several years with incontinence. This gel inserted into the bladder prevents it from emptying when the patient coughs, laughs, or exerts any type of force, and prevents her from only urinating when she needs to do so.
Dr. Carolina Opazo, urogynecologist at the Dr. Gustavo Fricke Hospital, explains it like this: “What this procedure will do is, through a minimally invasive cystoscopy, place a special gel that acts like an implant inside the body. And that will cause the entrance to the urethra and bladder neck to collapse with effort and then, when the patient wants to urinate, she will be able to urinate. It has a cure rate between 50 and 70%, with very low complications and with very good results because it does not have any major adverse effects.”
Although this device has a high cost, around two million pesos, it is indicated for young patients, who have undergone radiotherapy or who have multiple surgeries. As Dr. Opazo points out, “because more and more women survive post-cancer surgery with radiotherapy in the treatment of their cancer. They survive, but with all the consequences of incontinence, of all kinds.”
Hospital collaboration
But this milestone was possible thanks to the support of the Dr. Melissa Cifuentes, specialist urologist who had already performed this type of surgery before. In this regard, Dr. Cifuentes stated that “Collaborative work on these types of issues is super important. Technology is changing rapidly and it is very important to be able to make the latest advances available to users of the public system and in that sense collaboration is very significant. The Urogynecology or Pelvic Floor Service of the Van Buren Hospital and the Gustavo Fricke Hospital have a relationship of long years of collaboration in different diagnostic and therapeutic areas, such as this case.”
