Urogynecology & Pelvic Surgery
Urogynecology & Pelvic Surgery at Virginia Hospital Center, focuses on pelvic floor disorders such as incontinence and prolapse (bulging) of the vagina, bladder and/or uterus. In January, Virginia Hospital Center launched a state-of-the-art Urogynecology & Pelvic Surgery program offering the most advanced technologies and expertise in this unique field of medicine.
Heading the Center is Luis E. Sanz, MD, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Georgetown University School of Medicine and former Vice Chairman and Director of Urogynecology & Vaginal Reconstructive Surgery at Georgetown University Hospital. Dr. Sanz completed his MD and residency at Georgetown, followed by a two-year fellowship in pelvic surgery at DC General Hospital - Georgetown Program. He has edited four books and authored 30 journal articles on gynecologic surgery.
A particular area of focus for the Urogynecology & Pelvic Surgery program is urinary incontinence, which affects more that 11 million American women of all ages. Urinary leakage caused by a weakening of the pelvic floor muscles following childbirth can be emotionally debilitating. At Virginia Hospital Center, Dr. Sanz uses cutting-edge urodynamics (microcatheters connected to computers) to study bladder problems and determine optimal courses of treatment. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI), a disorder in which intermittent leakage is triggered by sudden movements as laughing, coughing or sneezing, may be minimized with the surgical insertion of a "sling" that cradles the urethra. The transobturator sling or "TOT" procedure has a success rate of 85-90%. Other kinds of urinary incontinence can be treated with drug therapies.
The Urogynecology & Pelvic Surgery Center, located on the 4th floor of the new Hospital, also manages complications from episiotomies and lacerations from vaginal deliveries. In addition, Dr. Sanz specializes in treatment for prolapse, a condition in which weakened pelvic muscles and ligaments allow organs such as the uterus, vagina, rectum, or bladder to shift out of place and herniate (bulge) into the vagina. This problem, which affects both older and younger women, can be repaired vaginally, oftentimes using synthetic mesh. "In most cases, the earlier these repairs are made, the higher the success rate," he says. In cases of severe vaginal prolapse or previously failed vaginal surgery, Dr. Sanz will perform modified abdominal sacrocolpopexy (reconstruction of the vagina).