Brief overview: Urinary leakage with physical activity is called stress urinary incontinence (SUI), and it affects about a quarter of women after pregnancy. Available treatments for SUI are surgical or endoscopic bulking injections. Unfortunately, symptoms can come back after treatment, this is called recurrent SUI. In some cases, symptoms may never have gone away following treatment, this is called persistent SUI. There are longstanding symptoms and distress associated with a failed primary procedure and there is currently no good evidence about which is the most effective treatment for women with recurrent or persistent SUI.
The PURSUIT study will help us to identify whether ‘surgical operations’ (of colposuspension, autologus urethral sling, or artificial urinary sphincter) or ‘endoscopic bulking injections’ are better for improving symptoms and quality of life for women with this condition.
We plan to recruit (enrol) 250 women from at least 20 NHS urology and urogynaecology sites (hospitals) across the United Kingdom (UK). Women who take part will be allocated to one treatment group; either ‘endoscopic bulking injections’ or ‘surgery’. If you are allocated to the surgical group, you and your doctor will choose which operation you have.
The PURSUIT study will run for 6 years, with 2 years of recruitment and 3 years of follow-up, ending in 2025.
For more information about the study and taking part, please view the Participant Information Leaflets and further details, here. You can also see which sites (hospitals) are taking part in the PURSUIT study, here.
For an introduction to the PURSUIT study, you can also watch the short video below, presented by Mr Marcus Drake, PURSUIT Chief Investigator, Urology Consultant and Professor of Urology.