Vaginal microbiota is associated with mesh exposure complication after trans-vaginal mesh procedure

Abstract

The application of transvaginal mesh (TVM) has been the predominant controversial issue in the global urogynecology field over the past decade. Mesh exposure, believed to be associated with microbial infection, is the key determinant of whether the TVM procedure should continue to be used in the future treatment of female prolapse. However, causal inference remains uncertain. We evaluated 122 postmenopausal patients who attended the outpatient clinic at a tertiary hospital for a post-TVM procedure follow-up. Fifty-seven patients met the inclusion criteria, among whom 39 patients had no complications and 18 patients had mesh exposure. Additionally, 65 healthy postmenopausal women were enrolled as controls. Vaginal microbiota communities were characterized using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing.