Urinary Retention Secondary to Colpocleisis: A Case Report

Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP) is common in older women, and depending on its extent, it is conservative or surgically treated. Colpocleisis is a technique for POP treatment, in which the vaginal canal is closed, entirely or partially, in order to avoid the protrusion of the pelvic structures, with preservation of the urethral meatus in order to preserve normal micturition.

We present a case of a 61-year old woman, who 8 years after a colpocleisis, progressed to urinary retention associated with the progressive scarring of the labia, causing the obstruction of the urethral meatus. The patient underwent a labiaplasty with anterior colpoperineoplasty, with complete normalization of her micturition and sexual activity.

Long term urinary retention complication has not been previously reported in the literature and should be included as a possible adverse event after colpocleisis.