The Relationship between Maximal Urethral Closure Pressure and Functional Urethral Length in Anterior Vaginal Wall Prolapse Patients According to Stage and Age

MUCP (Maximal urethral closure pressure) is known to be increased in patients with vaginal wall prolapse due to the mechanical obstruction of the urethra. However, urethral function following reduction has not yet been completely elucidated. Predicting postoperative urethral function may provide patients with important, additional information prior to surgery. Thus, this study was performed to evaluate the relationship between MUCP and functional urethral length (FUL) according to stage and age in anterior vaginal wall prolapse patients. 139 patients diagnosed with anterior vaginal wall prolapse at Yonsei University Medical College (YUMC) from March 1999 to May 2003 who had underwent urethral pressure profilometry following reduction were included in this study. The stage of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) was determined according to the dependent portion of the anterior vaginal wall (Aa, Ba). (By International Continence Society's POP Quantification system) Patients were divided into one of four age groups: patients in their 40s (n=13), 50s (n=53), 60s (n=54), and 70 and over (n=16). No difference in MUCP was found between the age groups. The FUL of patients in their 40s was shorter than that of patient's in their 50s and 60s. Patients were also divided into stages: stage II (n=35), stage III (n=76), and stage IV (n=25). No significant difference in MUCP was found according to stage and FUL. However, a significant difference was noted between stage III and IV as stage IV was longer. Anterior vaginal wall prolapse is known to affect urethral function due to prolapse itself, but according to our study, prolapse itself did not alter urethral function. This suggests that, regardless of age and stage, prolapse corrective surgery does not affect the urethral function.

The Predictive Values of Various Parameters in the Diagnosis of Stress Urinary Incontinence

The Maximum Urethral Closure Pressure (MUCP) and Functional Urethral Length (FUL) are significant parameters of the Urethral Pressure Profile (UPP), while the Q-tip angle and Bladder Neck Descent (BND) are the significant parameters of urethral hypermobility. We performed a study to evaluate the effects and predictive values of each of these parameters in the diagnosis of Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI). A retrospective study was done involving 90 SUI patients and 38 non-SUI patients who underwent urodynamic study, Q-tip test and perineal ultrasound at Yonsei Medical Center between January, 1999 and February, 2002. There was no statistical difference between the SUI and non-SUI groups in terms of mean age, delivery history, menopausal age and body mass index. While the FUL and Q-tip angle showed significant differences (33.18 +/- 19.55 vs 33.12 +/- 13.37 mm, p=0.002; 65.94 +/- 21.69 vs 56.45 +/- 26.53 degrees, p=0.02, respectively) neither the MUCP nor the BND showed any significant difference between the two groups (60.06 +/- 29.92 vs 48.97 +/- 42.95 cmH2O, p > 0.05; 1.09 +/- 0.75 vs 0.85 +/- 0.76 cm, p > 0.05; 0.71 +/- 0.80 vs 0.53 +/- 0.72 cm, p > 0.05). The odds ratios for the FUL and Q-tip angle were 1.038 (1.014, 1.061) and 1.017 (1.001, 1.033), respectively. The FUL and Q-tip angle had cut-off values of 1.36 cm (sensitivity: 68.8%, specificity : 54.1%, PPV : 73.8%, NPV : 48.1%) and 20.47 degrees (sensitivity : 93.3%, specificity : 18.17%, PPV : 68.2%, NPV : 60%), respectively, in the diagnosis of SUI. The area under the curve (AUC) of the FUL and Q-tip angle were on average 0.625 (p=0.0016) and 0.575 (p=0.0012), respectively. Both the FUL and Q-tip angle showed a significant difference between SUI patients and the normal group. However, their value as a diagnostic tool was trivial, and since their sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value showed inconsistent results at each cut-off value, it would be difficult to apply them to clinical use. A further study is required to set-up standard diagnostic values of these variables for clinical use.