Urogynecological surgery

For some urogynecologic conditions, surgery may be the best option to improve your health and quality of life. At Penn Medicine, our urogynecologists perform a wide range of surgical procedures to improve or restore pelvic health when dealing with conditions like prolapse and urinary incontinence. Urogynecologists have specialty training in obstetrics and gynecology as well as pelvic health and reconstructive surgery.

The goal of urogynecological surgery is to repair the muscles and connective tissue in the pelvic floor. Doing so helps keep your pelvic organs in their proper positions.

Our compassionate specialists discuss all your options and answer any questions you have about surgery. We offer advanced surgical techniques that use your own tissue, donor tissue, or surgical material when appropriate.  If you need to have a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus), your provider may recommend doing it at the same time.

Penn Medicine Urogynecology specializes in advanced and minimally invasive surgical solutions for pelvic conditions, including laparoscopic and vaginal approaches and robotic-assisted techniques.

The urogynecologists at Penn Medicine have years of training and experience in the latest minimally invasive techniques. Minimally invasive urogynecologic surgery can help you recover faster and reduce your risk of complications.

Our minimally invasive approaches for pelvic organ prolapse include:

• Laparoscopic, which uses small incisions on the abdomen (belly) to access pelvic organs
• Robotic-assisted procedures, which enable greater precision in a laparoscopic procedure
• Vaginal, which involves making one or more small incisions in the vagina to repair the prolapse

Robotic-assisted sacrocolpopexy at Penn Medicine

Robotic-assisted sacrocolpopexy is a urogynecologic procedure that can correct different types of prolapse, including:

• Cystocele, when the bladder drops into the vagina
• Enterocele, when the small intestine pushes on the top part of the vagina
• Rectocele, when the rectum extends into the back wall of the vagina
• Uterine prolapse, when the uterus bulges into the vagina
• Vaginal vault prolapse, when the top of the vagina collapses into the lower part of the vagina

Our surgeons perform sacrocolpopexy using state-of-the-art minimally invasive robotic technology to enhance surgical precision. The robotic system allows them to move the instruments with smaller, more controlled movements. During sacrocolpopexy, we move the pelvic organs back into place and use surgical mesh to hold them in their correct position. We can also perform the procedure after a hysterectomy to treat uterine prolapse and provide long-term support for the vagina.

Some pelvic floor disorders need multidisciplinary surgical care. Led by women for women, the Penn Women’s FIRST Clinic addresses colorectal, gastrointestinal, and urogynecological issues, including defecatory disorders, prolapse, and incontinence, in a single convenient location.

Female patients are assessed by three female physicians simultaneously―a gastroenterologist, colorectal surgeon, and urogynecologist. Together they identify the underlying issue and develop a collaborative care plan that may include a surgical approach.