(MUSIC)
HALF OF ALL WOMEN OVER THE AGE OF FIFTY EXPERIENCE SOME DEGREE
OF PELVIC ORGAN PROLAPSE OR OTHER PELVIC FLOOR DISORDER.
NOW TO EXPLAIN WHAT THIS IS AND TO
GIVE US ALL THE FACTS CONCERNING THIS MEDICAL CONDITION, WE'RE
JOINED TODAY BY DOCTOR HEATHER VAN RAALTE, BOARD CERTIFIED URO
GYNECOLOGIST AT PRINCETON UROGYNECOLOGY LOCATED IN
PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY.
DR.
VAN RAALTE CURRENTLY SERVES AS A
CONSULTANT TO ASA.
GOOD MORNING DOCTOR.
THANK YOU IT'S SO NICE TO BE HERE.
LET'S TALK ABOUT FIRST PELVIC FLOOR DISORDER.
WHAT EXACTLY IT IS AND WHO DOES IT EFFECT.
SO PELVIC FLOOR DISORDERS CAN
INCLUDE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT CONDITIONS INCLUDING URINARY
INCOMPETENCE, OVER ACTIVE BLADDER, BOWL CONTROL ISSUES AND
PELVIC ORGAN PROLAPSE.
AND LET'S TALK ABOUT THE QUALITY OF LIFE.
TELL OUR VIEWERS WHAT IT DOES TO WOMEN.
WELL IT HAS A VERY LARGE IMPACT IN QUALITY OF LIFE.
YOU KNOW THESE CONDITIONS WE SAY, THEY
ARE NEVER GOING TO KILL YOU, BUT THEY WILL ROB YOUR LIFE FROM
YOU.
SO THEY IMPACT YOUR DAY TO DAY LIVING, ACTIVITIES,
EXERCISE, BODY IMAGE, SEXUAL FUNCTION.
THEY CAN BECOME UNCOMFORTABLE CAUSING DIFFERENT
DEGREES OF PAIN OR DISCOMFORT THRU DAILY LIVING.
AND ALOT OF WOMEN ARE NOT AWARE OF WHAT'S OUT THERE OR WHAT CAN
BE DONE.
THERE'S ALSO COMMERCIALS ON TV THAT TALK
ABOUT COMPLICATIONS ARE RISING FROM SYNTHETIC MESHES BEING USED
IN THESE SURGERIES SO HOW DO YOU ADDRESS THIS WITH YOUR PATIENTS
WHEN THEY COME IN AND THEY SAY THIS IS HAPPENING TO ME RIGHT
NOW.
YEA, SO IT'S VERY CONCERNING AND I THINK THE ADS ON TV HAVE
REALLY AMPLIFIED THAT ANXIETY AND CONCERNS.
IT'S REALLY UNFORTUNATE.
IT IS.
ALL OF THE INFORMATION OR MAJORITY OF THE INFORMATION
WOMEN ARE RECEIVING THESE DAYS ARE COMING FROM TRIAL LAWYERS ON
TV INSTEAD OF THE PHYSICIANS THAT REALLY DEDICATE THEIR
CAREERS TO TAKING CARE OF WOMEN.
SO WHEN EVERY PATIENT COMES IN IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO TALK
ABOUT WHAT ARE GOALS ARE, WHAT THEIR INDIVIDUAL PROBLEMS AND
NEEDS ARE FOR REPAIR AND THANKFULLY THERE'S ALOT OF
OPTIONS OUT THERE FOR US NOW.
AND LET'S TALK ABOUT THOSE OPTIONS IN TERMS OF SURGERY WHAT
ARE THE OPTIONS AND WHAT ARE YOU RECOMMENDING TO WOMEN TODAY TO
HELP THEM GET THRU THIS?
WELL ARE TRADITIONAL REPAIRS ARE USING SUTRA BASED REPAIRS WHERE
WE TAKE TISSUE, CONNECTIVE TISSUES AND LIGAMENTS THAT HAVE
BECOME DAMAGED OVER THE YEARS AND TRY AND PUT THEM BACK
TOGETHER WITH SUTRAS.
BUT YOUR NOT REALLY DOING ANYTHING TO
STRENGTHEN THE TISSUES WHEN YOU DO THAT.
SO UNFORTUNATELY THESE REPAIRS HAVE A 40% FAILURE RATE
WITHIN THE FIRST FEW YEARS OF SURGERY.
WOW.
AND THAT'S JUST UNACCEPTABLE...
NO.
FOR SURGEONS AND PATIENTS ALIKE.
SO WE'VE TURNED TO USING GRAFTS AND IMPLANTS TO AUGMENT THE
RESULTS OF OUR SURGERY AND THERE'S REALLY TWO BIG OPTIONS
THAT WE HAVE.
ONE IS USING THE SYNTHETIC MATERIALS AND THE
OTHER IS TO TURN TOWARD A MORE BIOLOGICALLY DERIVED MATERIAL
FOR A NATURAL REPAIR.
SO DOCTOR, SHOW ME HOW THIS WORKS AND LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS
NEW APPROACH.
OK, SO ONE OF THE NEWEST MATERIALS THAT WE HAVE IS THIS
METRA STEM PLEVIC FLOOR MATRIX.
OK.
AND WHAT IT IS IS A NATURALLY DERIVED GRAFT THAT WE PLACE
UNDERNEATH THE SKIN AND AREAS OF DAMAGE CONNECTIVE TISSUE.
AND WHAT'S UNIQUE ABOUT THIS PRODUCT
IS IT ACTUALLY DISSOLVES.
IT COMPLETELY GOES AWAY WITH IN THE
FIRST FEW MONTHS OF USE.
SO HOW DOES IT HELP THEN?
AS IT DISSOLVES IT RELEASES A LAYER OF COMPONENTS THAT HELP
YOUR BODY REBUILD OR RESTORE THE CONNECTIVE TISSUE THAT WAS THERE
BEFORE.
AND ARE HOPE IS THAT IT'S GOING TO BE AS STRONG AS
THE TISSUE WAS BEFORE IT WAS DAMAGED.
EASY SURGERY?
IT'S RELATIVELY EASY SURGERY FOR PATIENTS TO UNDERGO.
IN THE RIGHT HANDS THIS PROCEDURE COULD
BE DONE UNDER A REGIONAL ANESTHESIA TO AVOID GENERAL AND
CAN TYPICALLY BE PERFORMED IN LESS THEN ONE HOUR.
AND YOU DO ALOT OF THESE DOCTOR IN YOUR OPINION HAVE YOU SEEN
PATIENTS COME BACK TO YOU AND SAY OH MY GOSH I GOT MY LIFE
BACK?
WE DO A LARGE NUMBER OF THESE SURGERIES TYPICALLY FIVE TO TEN
PER WEEK AND THE NUMBER ONE COMMENT FROM PATIENTS, I SHOULD
HAVE DONE THIS EARLIER AND THEY COMMENT ON WHAT A DIFFERENCE
THIS HAS MADE AND THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE WITH THE ACTIVITIES
THEY'RE ABLE TO DO AND GET OUT THERE AND ENJOY LIFE AGAIN.
ANY CLOSING THOUGHTS FOR VIEWERS OUT THERE WHO MIGHT BE THINKING
THIS IS NOT WHAT I THOUGHT IT WAS.
I'M A LITTLE SCARED.
THERE'S ALOT OF ANXIETY AROUND THESE CONDITIONS.
THE MORE PERSONAL A CONDITION, THE MORE
ANXIETY THERE IS AND THE ADS ON TV REALLY DON'T HELP US DECREASE
THIS ANXIETY THIS TIME.
I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO HAVE A
COUPLE GOOD RESOURCES IN YOUR BACK POCKET TO TREAT THESE
CONDITIONS.
ONE IS TO FIND THE RIGHT DOCTOR.
TO FIND SOMEONE WHO'S EXPERIENCED IN THESE
CONDITIONS AND HAS THE EXPERTISE TO OFFER YOU DIFFERENT OPTIONS
FOR REPAIR.
AND THE SECOND IS TO REALLY KNOW YOUR RESOURCES.
ONE IS MADE BY METRA STEM THE PELVIC
FLOOR MATRIX TO FIND MORE INFORMATION YOU CAN GO TO
PFDOPTIONS.COM.
AND THE SECOND IS A NATIONAL RESOURCE FROM OUR
UROGYNECOLOGY SOCIETY AND IT'S MADE FOR PATIENTS.
IT'S VOICESFORPFD.ORG.
THANK YOU SO MUCH.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.
GREAT SEGMENT AND GREAT INFORMATION.
REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR TIME DOCTOR.
AND IF YOU'D LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT NEW
APPROACHES AND TECHNOLOGIES BEING USED TO IMPROVE PELVIC
ORGAN PROLAPSE YOU CAN VISIT OUR WEBSITE THEBALANCINGACT.COM.
WE'VE GOT THOSE WEBSITES THERE FOR YOU AS WELL IN CASE YOU
MISSED IT.
OR GET SOCIAL.
LOG ONTO
FACEBOOK/THEBALANCINGACTFANS.