Bladder Surgery Complications

Bladder surgery complications may occur with all types of procedures. For example, women who undergo a retropubic suspension to repair a weak or damaged bladder may experience a bladder infection (urinary tract infection), surgical site infection, or recurrence of the loss of bladder control or urge incontinence. Infections or urinary retention can also occur after a sling procedure, along with gradual deterioration of the sling. If you do too many strenuous activities or push through your recovery sooner than your body can handle, you may run the risk of the sling detaching.

Bladder surgery complications for cancer tumor removal or a cystectomy may include another bladder problem, such as frequent urination. You may also experience blood in urine, bladder pain, or bladder spasms during bladder surgery recovery as your body is healing. A radical cystectomy is one of several impotence causes. There may be an inability to produce semen, one of many erectile dysfunction causes. For women, if the ovaries and uterus have been removed along with the bladder, you would lose your ability to become pregnant and begin menopause. There are some medications that can be prescribed to help with these issues and increase sexual function again.

While recovering from surgery for stress incontinence, you may experience some painful or burning urination or urinary retention when you have difficulty urinating or emptying your bladder completely. Our surgeons can insert a catheter to help urine flow to avoid further medical complications from the retention of urine. Some patients may have to use catheters for long periods of time until their body is able to urinate naturally again, usually in 2 to 6 weeks.

Surgery for the prostate and incontinence are linked, in the sense that you can experience stress incontinence after prostate surgery. During recovery, you may have to receive therapy, continence training, or bladder training to help control urination. Patients who receive stimulation therapy to help with incontinence and urinary retention through the use of implants may experience implant failure over time. In some cases the devices that control the implants can be replaced, and in other cases you may need to reinstall the implants.

Bladder surgery complications can be minimized with proper care after surgery. If you have received an ileal conduit (or alternate passageway to release urine) during your cystectomy, you will have to care for the stoma, or hole, in which the abdominal diversion reservoir is connected. Stoma maintenance and regular emptying of the plastic bag is important to avoid infection or overflow or backup of urine. No matter what complications may arise from bladder surgery, our medical staff at Urology Specialists will be available to assist you and provide you with the best treatment options to help you fully recover.

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