How should we report incontinence after radical prostatectomy?

摘要

Despite improvements in surgical techniques, urinary incontinence (UI) is not uncommon after radical prostatectomy (RP) and may dramatically worsen the quality of life of a patient who has been successfully cured of prostate cancer. The real incidence of post-prostatectomy UI remains unknown as it depends on various factors, namely the definition of UI, the methodology used to assess continence, the time of observation, the caregivers involved in followup and, most importantly, the subjective evaluation of continence status by the patient. Some patients are satisfied with their continence status although they require 2 pads daily, while others complain about severe incontinence if they lose a drop during a Valsalva maneuver. Therefore, a proper objective evaluation of post-RP UI is essential not only to properly evaluate incontinence itself but also to evaluate the ability of new surgical techniques or postoperative treatments to improve or hasten continence recovery.