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BACKGROUND: Post massive-weight-loss (MWL) body-contouring is a growing area of plastic surgery. Studies have shown improvement of preexisting urinary incontinence (UI) in patients undergoing abdominal body-contouring procedures. These studies are small, focus on cosmetic abdominoplasties, and lack utilization of standardized incontinence surveys. The purpose of this study was to evaluate UI endpoints in MWL patients undergoing body-contouring procedures.
METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted over a six-year period for patients undergoing abdominal body-contouring procedures after MWL. Patients excluded had previous body-contouring procedures or previously treated UI. Participants completed validated surveys to catalogue pre- and post-operative urinary habits. Patients were then subdivided based on presence of pre-operative UI. Outcomes were compared within and between cohorts using Student’s t-test, Chi-square and Wilcoxan Rank Sum tests.
RESULTS: A total of 102 patients completed the survey, 44 of which had pre-operative UI. There were no statistically significant differences in pre-operative characteristics between the UI and non-UI group. Within the UI cohort, patients had significant decreases in incidence and severity of UI post-operatively (p<0.01, respectively), as well as significant increases in their quality of life (p<0.02). Over 20% noted symptom resolution, and 67% were mostly or completely satisfied with the outcome.
CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first to document amelioration of UI symptoms in MWL patients undergoing body-contouring procedures. It adds to literature suggesting that abdominoplasties in select patients may improve incontinence symptoms. Future work will focus on evaluating the mechanism of this outcome and documenting improvement in an objective, prospective manner.