248: Use of an Artificial Urethral Sphincter in Dogs with Urethral Sphincter Mechanism Incompetence

Project Summary

Urinary incontinence (urine leakage) occurs in 13.6 percent to 20.1 percent of female dogs after elective spay procedures. Use of drugs to increase urethral tone are effective in many cases, though dogs that fail to respond to medical therapy require surgical intervention. Traditional surgical techniques have poor long-term success rates, with only 14 percent of dogs maintaining continence after one year in the most recent report. The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of a hydraulic urethral spincter (HUS) in female dogs with urinary incontinence. Patient-controlled HUS have been used for many years in human beings and are highly effective in restoration of continence. In this study, four female dogs with sphincter mechanism incontinence (spay induced incontinence) which was unresponsive to medical management with phenyl propanolamine were treated with an artificial Hydraulic Urethral Sphincter. The artificial urethral sphincter implantation was performed in all 4 dogs without major complication. One dog had its infusion port removed after self abrasion of the implantation site. Initial results were very promising, with restoration of continence in 3 of 4 dogs without additional hormonal therapy. The fourth dog was not immediately continent after placement of the sphincter, but improved overtime. Long-term maintenance of continence has been the primary weakness of other published techniques for the treatment of incontinence in dogs so these are very exciting results. The SHUS warrants further clinical evaluation for treatment of dogs with USMI unresponsive to medical management.

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