The completeness and accuracy of the Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry.

INTRODUCTION: Medical quality registries have gained popularity as tools for monitoring the quality of medical treatments and they serve as data sources for research. The Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry (NFIR) was established in 1998 to monitor and improve the quality of surgery for women with stress and mixed urinary incontinence in Norway and to collect data for research. This study aimed to assess the completeness and accuracy of the Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry, and potential differences in data accuracy over time and according to surgical volume of the reporting hospitals. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A random selection of 300 women from a total of 20 610 operated for urinary incontinence between 1998 and 2016 reported to the Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry from 28 public hospitals were selected for validation. The database completeness was estimated for 2008-2017 by comparing surgical procedures registered both in the Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry and the Norwegian National Patient Registry. Historical data recorded in the Registry for 10 selected key variables were extracted and compared with the patients' individual medical records at the reporting hospitals as reference. The reviewers were blinded to the previously stored information. The intraclass correlation coefficient for continuous variables and Cohen's kappa for categorical variables were calculated. RESULTS: Primary source data on 285 of the 300 women selected from Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry were successfully retrieved. The completeness of the registry has increased from 61% in 2008 to 99% in 2017. The national coverage has increased from 12 reporting departments in 1998 to all 38 public departments performing female incontinence surgery in 2017. Excellent accuracy was found for both continuous variables (intraclass correlation coefficient >0.94) and categorical variables (Cohen's kappa >0.86). No differences in data accuracy were found comparing high-volume hospitals with low-volume hospitals, or when comparing data accuracy over time. CONCLUSIONS: The Norwegian Female Incontinence Registry is a reliable tool for quality assessment of incontinence surgery and research. The registry completeness has improved over time and now contains data on nearly all women undergoing incontinence surgery in Norway.

Childbirth after mid-urethral sling surgery: effects on long-term success and complications.

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: To evaluate long-term outcomes in women with one or more childbirths after mid-urethral sling (MUS) surgery and potential differences in outcomes based on mode of delivery. METHODS: A population-based cohort study using data from two national registries. Women registered with childbirth after MUS (case group) or without childbirth after MUS (control group), with equal follow-up time, underwent a structured telephone interview using a validated short-form urinary disease-specific questionnaire. Primary outcomes were current stress urinary incontinence (SUI) rate and change in cure rate. Secondary outcomes were effect of delivery mode, rates of repeat operations for SUI, complications, treatment satisfaction and urgency urinary incontinence rate. Childbirth as an independent risk factor for SUI recurrence was also evaluated. RESULTS: Seventy-two women with and 156 women without childbirth after MUS were included. Median follow-up time was 10 years for both groups. Subjective SUI cure rates were 82% (cases) and 75% (controls), respectively (p = 0.31). A significantly lower SUI cure rate was seen in the women with more than one childbirth after MUS (50% vs. 88% p = 0.006). No differences in primary or secondary outcomes were found between groups at follow-up, nor did mode of delivery affect outcomes. Childbirth after MUS was not an independent risk factor for subjective SUI recurrence (OR 0.8 CI 0.3-1.7). CONCLUSIONS: No differences in outcomes were seen between groups at follow-up independently of delivery mode. However, having more than one delivery after MUS seems to impact the continence status.

Reducing post-caesarean surgical wound infection rate: an improvement project in a Norwegian maternity clinic.

BACKGROUND: During 2006 and 2007 the rate of caesarean section surgical wound infection was 17,4 % in Baerum Hospital. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to reduce the incidence to below the Norwegian national level of 8 %. DESIGN: The intervention (a quality improvement project) was implemented in September 2008. A bundle of measures were introduced. Staff from all aspects of patient flow was recruited. Cochrane literature was used as gold standard. Data registration was based upon CDC criteria. RESULTS: were based on data collected through the Norwegian national surveillance system for infections in health care, NOIS. Study setting This Maternity clinic has about 2500 births annually and a caesarean section rate pushing 15 %. PATIENT GROUP: The study was conducted on caesarean section patients registered in NOIS (2008-2010). From September 2009 data were harvested continuously. ASSESSMENT: Data were monitored as cumulative incidence rate and by statistical process control as g chart (number of surgeries between infections including a delayed moving average). Infection control staff reported results to Head of Maternity Clinic monthly. RESULTS: The overall rate of caesarean section surgical wound infections was significantly reduced to 3,1 % (2008-2010 about 1 % in 2010). This result was demonstrated elegantly as a marked shift in process in g-chart. We found the g-chart was efficient, sensitive and simple to handle.

TVT compared with TVT-O and TOT: results from the Norwegian National Incontinence Registry.

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: The aim of this study is to compare the outcome and complication rates of the tension-free vaginal tape (TVT) operations with the transobturator vaginal tape (TVT-O and TOT) operations in the treatment of urinary stress incontinence. METHODS: This is a multicenter, prospective cohort study. Preoperative and postoperative assessments included a validated Stress and Urge Incontinence Questionnaire, a 24-h pad test, and a standardized stress test. RESULTS: The study included 5,942 women--4,281 women had a TVT operation and 731 and 373 women had TVT-O and TOT operations, respectively. Median follow-up time was 8 months. Women in the TVT group had less leakage during stress test and fewer subjective stress incontinence symptoms, and were more satisfied with the operation compared with the women in TVT-O and TOT groups, but more complications were reported after TVT operation. CONCLUSIONS: The TVT operation is more efficient than TVT-O and TOT operations in treating stress incontinent women.