I am 71 years old , and have a prolapsed bladder, They tell me I need surgery, has any one done this, tell me about it. how did it come out. Did they make a incision? Did it take care of the problem? I"m getting bladder infections, and feel a falling pressure down there, Don"t be bashfull , I need some answers Irene

-- Irene Orsborn (tkorsborn@cs.com), May 01, 2001

Answers

I'm really sorry about your problem! Surgery is always pretty scary. Anyway I found a bunch of stuff with a search. Try that. Good luck to you

http://www.uihealthcare.com/topics/womenshealth/wome3275.html

-- Kirk Davis (kirkay@yahoo.com), May 03, 2001.

I'm just 52, but was told years ago I should probably have this done too, but of course I went in search of alternatives. What has worked for me is doing twice daily kegel exercises. Drink cranberry juice, take garlic, eats lots of high Vit c foods to help prevent/treat infections.

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), May 03, 2001.

Hi Irene, My best friend just had that surgery and she was out of commission for a little over a week before she could really get around. She is 49 years old and had her bladder tacked back up. The doctor who did the surgery used a new procedure which utilized a mesh material to hold the bladder in position. She took about 5 weeks to completely recover and the worst part of the whole operation was the catheter that was left in (it is supposed to be left in) after the surgery to allow the kidneys to flush out without filling the bladder until the bladder has time to recover from the procedure. Now she is fine and has not had any more bladder infections. The procedure was expensive, it cost her and her insurance company close to $28,000 and she stayed in the hospital two days. Other than the catheter, which was annoying as she had to use a urine collection bag as well, she said it was not too bad. Of course, if there were any other way to avoid that, I would look into it. She had a test performed prior to surgery which inflated her bladder and measured how much it had dropped. There is a certain number that has to be reached before this surgeon would operate. I don't remember the number, but do know her test came back showing she exceeded the range, meaning that her bladder had dropped to the point it was sitting on the pelvic floor. Hence the continuous bladder infections and urinary tract infections. Good luck with your decision and if you aren't comfortable with the first doctor's opinion by all means get a second opinion.

-- Cindy (colawson@mindspring.com), May 05, 2001.

My mom had this done when she was in her 60's. She said that she wish she hadn't waited so long. It was well worth the surgery. Seems to me she didn't take too long to heal either, and she was not a healthy woman. Just listen to the Docs, and don't do any lifting. Follow their advice religeously, even if you "feel up to it", make yourself wait, and be waited on until you heal all the way. That is the secret to success. Good luck.

-- sandie (sthompson@unispherenetworks.com), May 15, 2001.