NEW NON-SURGICAL THERAPIES IN INCONTINENCE
For patients with mild to moderate symptoms, or for those who are not surgical
candidates, there are several effective modalities of therapy which are provided
by our board certified and nationally recognized continence nurse practitioner.
These methods of treatment are effective in 70% of patients and include:

BIOFEEDBACK: Working with specialized equipment to facilitate pelvic floor
muscle training. This can be used in stress incontinence, urge incontinence,
mixed incontinence and urgency/frequency.

BLADDER TRAINING: A supervised program which, among with pelvic floor
strengthening, can improve frequency and urgency.

NEW MEDICATIONS: The growing demand for treatments for incontinence has
lead to the development of two new medications.

• DITROPAN XL is a formulation of a standard medication that can be taken
by mouth once a day and appears to be well tolerated.

• DETROL LA is a new medication for treatment of overactive bladder. It selectively
treats the bladder and, thus, causes fewer side effects, like dry mouth or
constipation. It is also taken by mouth once a day.

• OXYTROL

NEW SURGICAL PROCEDURES IMPROVE INCONTINENCE TREATMENT
Pacific Continence Center surgeons are also trained in the most advanced
techniques of surgical management of urinary incontinence. We continue to
enhance our surgical armamentarium to provide a wide array of state-of-the-art
incontinence treatments. Among them are:

TENSION FREE VAGINAL TAPE (TVT) AND SPARC: Once again, we are
bringing a new minimally invasive procedure for stress incontinence to our
community. This procedure involves the placement of Prolene tape to support
the urethra and can be performed under local anesthesia on an outpatient basis.
This technique has had excellent results in both the US and Europe.  

LAPAROSCOPIC BLADDER SUSPENSION: We at the PCC pioneered this
minimally invasive technique in our community and have excellent five-year
results. Our results have been equal to or better than with open techniques.
Dr. Rosenman has published an article about our experience, which is
available in our center.

COLLAGEN INJECTIONS: For ten years we have been injecting collagen near
the urethra through a cystoscope to treat some forms of incontinence. The
procedure is done under local anesthesia and is very successful. There is no
post-procedure pain or limitations. Our oldest patient to have this surgery is 97
and the procedure allowed her a much more active lifestyle.

PROLAPSE SURGERY: We are now able to perform some types of prolapse
surgery laparoscopically, with excellent results. For example, in certain cases
laparoscopic prolapse procedures can be combined with laparoscopic bladder
suspensions or vaginal procedures to avoid open surgery.

INTERSTIM: In 2001, we introduced this new concept to our community. It is
designed for patients with some bladder conditions who have not been helped by
other therapies. This FDA approved treatment utilizes a nerve stimulator to treat
severe urinary urgency and urge incontinence and certain cases of urinary
retention. A simple office-based procedure can determine if this treatment will be
effective and, if so, a permanent stimulator can be implanted surgically.