What to Expect

GYNECARE TVT™ Tension-free Support for Incontinence is a 30-minute, minimally invasive, effective treatment for stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Here’s what you can expect.

What happens during the procedure?

GYNECARE TVT™ is designed to stop urine leakage by supporting your urethra with a tape-like strip of mesh. Your doctor inserts the mesh in an outpatient procedure under local, regional or general anesthetic. Depending on your specific needs, the procedure may be performed using very small incisions. Your doctor can tell you specifically what will happen during your treatment.

The mesh acts as a supportive sling, allowing the urethra to stay closed when appropriate and preventing bladder leakage. Learn more about how GYNECARE TVT™ works or find a doctor who can provide treatment to discuss if it’s right for you.

What happens after the procedure?

Patients treated with GYNECARE TVT™ usually return home the same day. The rate of complications is low with GYNECARE TVT™,and most patients can expect a short recovery period.

While recovering, you should be able to resume most daily activities quickly, however, your doctor may advise you to avoid heavy lifting and sexual intercourse for 4 weeks.

Most patients experience immediate results with significantly less or no bladder leakage. Moreover, 97% of women surveyed following treatment with GYNECARE TVT™ were still dry or had significantly less bladder leakage 11 years later!

Long-term, most patients treated with GYNECARE TVT™ experience minimal or no scarring and report high effectiveness over time.

What are the risks with GYNECARE TVT™

All surgical procedures present some risks, so be sure to talk to a doctor about whether GYNECARE TVT™ is right for you.

Complications associated with the procedure include injury to blood vessels of the pelvis, difficulty urinating, pain, scarring, pain with intercourse, bladder and bowel injury.

There is also a risk of the mesh material becoming exposed. Exposure may require treatment. Synthetic mesh is a permanent medical device implant. Therefore, you should carefully discuss the decision to have surgery with your doctor and understand the benefits and risks of mesh implant surgery before deciding how to treat your condition.

The GYNECARE TVT™ procedure should not be performed in pregnant patients. Additionally, because the mesh-like tape will not stretch significantly, GYNECARE TVT™ should not be used in women who plan future pregnancy.

For a complete description of risks related to this treatment, please see the Adverse Reactions section of the Risk Information.

This information represents no statement, promise or guarantee by ETHICON, INC., concerning insurance coverage, levels of reimbursement, payment, or charge. Please consult your payor organization with regard to local or actual coverage determination processes.