Insertable Device
A pessary is a small, removable device, often shaped like a ring, that is placed in the upper part of the vagina to support the pelvic organs. Pessaries do not actually cure pelvic organ prolapse, but they can help relieve symptoms and keep the prolapse from worsening.
Surgery
Surgical procedures to treat pelvic organ prolapse usually do two things: put the prolapsed organs back in their normal locations or remove them and reinforce the weakened pelvic floor. Often a graft or mesh is placed to reinforce the repair.
There are two main categories of tissue repair materials:
- Synthetic Mesh: These are sheets of man-made materials (polypropylene, polyester, silicone or polytetrafluoroethylene) that permanently remain in your body. While they offer strength for a repair, they may cause problems. For example:
- You might be able to feel the mesh in your abdomen, causing discomfort.
- Synthetic mesh can erode into surrounding tissue or organs, resulting in pain and tissue damage.
- Your body might respond to synthetic mesh as a foreign material and surround it with scar tissue.
- Biologic Grafts: Derived from human or animal tissue, biologic grafts typically allow cells to grow into the graft and replace it—a process called remodeling. Some biologic grafts are made from skin tissue, which makes them prone to stretching and bulging. Other biologic grafts are chemically cross-linked to strengthen the material. However, when these grafts are implanted, your body may respond to them as if they were a synthetic mesh.
- Biodesign is a next generation biologic graft shown to reduce recurrence rates when compared to other biologics. That’s because, once in place the body completely remodels Biodesign into strong, organized tissue.
And unlike synthetic mesh, nothing is left permanently in the body to cause problems down the road.