After Vaginal Mesh Surgery – Complications to Watch Out For

How to identify complications from vaginal mesh surgery, including mesh erosion and other painful problems.

Incontinence is an embarrassing problem for many women, and the promise of no longer being faced with the condition can be intriguing. Not rushing to the bathroom, being wary whenever you sneeze or laugh, or wearing underwear liners around the clock can sound like a dream come true.

For many women, transvaginal tape (TVT), vaginal mesh, bladder sling implants and other related devices appeared to be just what they needed to address this pesky problem once and for all. Designed to treat stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, vaginal mesh surgery involves having the device (also called a midurethral sling) implanted into the pelvis by a skilled surgeon. However, any kind of surgery is scary and risky. A lot of women want to know what happens after vaginal mesh surgery, when they’ll be back to normal, and what it’s really like to live with a vaginal mesh implant.

Vaginal Mesh Complications

Vaginal mesh erosion is a big concern and can be caused in a number of ways. Most commonly, “erosion into the vagina” is what happens and it’s also the simplest to treat—but that doesn’t mean it’s easy by any means.

Vaginal mesh erosion can also happen if the vaginal incision wasn’t properly closed during the procedure and the healing process has been compromised. This is less common, and might even be considered medial malpractice in certain cases. However, when erosion does happen, the complications can be painful and lead to lifelong problems including scarring, infertility, chronic pain and the inability to enjoy sex for life.

The reason vaginal mesh lawsuits are numbering in the thousands is because vaginal mesh victims claim they weren’t properly warned about the risks of complications like mesh erosion. While incontinence is a hassle, these vaginal mesh sufferers say fixing the problem isn’t worth the trade-off.

Erosion and puncturing of tissue and organs is perhaps one of the most common vaginal mesh complications, and the heart of vaginal mesh multidistrict litigation, but there are also others.

Symptoms of Mesh Erosion

In some women, a lot of blood might gather in the vaginal wall post-surgery and this can disrupt the incision site. This can also lead to mesh erosion into surrounding vaginal tissue, and even erosion in the bladder or urethra. When this occurs, it’s more challenging to treat. It calls for a complex follow up procedure, or sometimes several, and can be very painful post-surgery and uncomfortable. This type of erosion isn’t as common, but it does happen. Sometimes women experience symptoms of mesh erosion and the problem is caught right away, but other times there are no symptoms.

Vaginal mesh erosion ymptoms may include vaginal or bladder infections that won’t go away, vaginal discharge, bleeding, pain, and pain that happens only with intercourse. The degree of pain can vary greatly, once again depending on a woman’s pain threshold and body. The catch-22 is that some discomfort, and even slight pain, is normal post-surgery. It all comes down to a physician realizing what’s “normal” discomfort and what isn’t.

Oftentimes, painful and expensive follow-up surgery is required to fix the problem. The problem is so common, in fact, that thousands of vaginal mesh lawsuits have been filed across the country, resulting in millions of dollars in settlements for victims.

Other Types of Pain

It’s impossible to pinpoint how much (or little) pain a woman will experience post-op because every person is different and every surgery is unique. There are different pain tolerance thresholds, but most surgeons will recommend a patient take off at least two weeks from work just in case. Of course, those with a more sedentary job and/or higher pain tolerance may be able to return to work sooner.

Overall, transvaginal mesh surgery is relatively non-invasive, but certain activities should be shelved for six to eight weeks. “Activities” can vary greatly, but are generally described as lifting anything over 10 pounds, sexual activity, using a tampon during your cycle, douching, and working out. Stretching and bending are discouraged for at least one month.

The good news? Even though transvaginal mesh requires sutures, there’s no need to have the sutures removed—they’re usually under the skin and dissolve on their own. During the follow-up appointments, a physician will check the placement of the bladder sling and ensure the woman is feeling well.

As with many minimally invasive surgeries, most women handle the actual procedure quite well. However, immediately after the vaginal mesh implant procedure, a lot of women may have trouble when it comes to urination for a few days. Catheters may be used for the very short term, and in other instances some women are taught to catheterize themselves for a few weeks. However, after six weeks, most women’s bodies have adjusted to the device and they have no trouble voiding at all.

On the other hand, sometimes the vaginal sling was implanted too tightly, and a follow-up surgery may be required in order to loosen it. It’s not uncommon for voiding issues to pop up for a couple of months post-surgery, and a reputable surgeon will let patients know what to expect. While this is a common issue that often fixes itself, it’s important to note that there are other problems that may occur—and they may be more common than you think.

Did You Experience a Vaginal Mesh Erosion?

If you were forced to undergo follow-up surgery to correct problems caused by mesh erosion, you might qualify for a vaginal mesh legal claim. Learn more by visiting the Vaginal Mesh Sling Class Action Lawsuit Investigation right now. Once you submit your information, a vaginal mesh lawyer will contact you if you have a case for a free claim review.