A qualitative study of women's preferences for treatment of pelvic floor disorders

Objective To explore women's perceptions of new and established treatments for stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and prolapse, and to identify factors important to women in decision-making about treatments. Design Qualitative interview study. Setting Urogynaecology unit in a large UK district general hospital. Population Women referred from their general practitioner with SUI and/or prolapse symptoms. Methods Each woman was given a questionnaire detailing nonsurgical and surgical treatments for SUI and/or prolapse. This briefly detailed the treatment, together with published success and complication rates. Participants were taken through a semi-structured interview based on their perceptions of each treatment, and the factors that lead them to find treatments acceptable or not acceptable. Interviews were conducted by a member of the research team before the initial appointment with the clinical team. Interviews were transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis using constant comparison derived from grounded theory. Main outcome measure Themes identified from analysis of interview transcripts. Results A total of 16 women were interviewed. Their median age was 54 years (range 48-70 years). Women with SUI were keen to have the treatment with the highest chance of long-term success, even if this was more invasive. Women with prolapse were more unsure about this, and less willing to risk potential complications for a higher chance of long-term success. Conclusions Many factors affect women's decision-making with regards to treatment choices. This analysis highlights the need for careful exploration of women's hopes and expectations before embarking on treatment.