Coloplast Virtue sling out / American Medical System AdVance sling in. Now 100% dry for the first t

Last July I was implanted with a Coloplast Virtue sling without my consent. I had consented to American Medical System's AdVance sling or an identical design if it existed.

After suffering approximately one month with continuous and horrific pain, following implant surgery, I was horrified to learn that I had not been implanted with an American Medical System AdVance sling as consented to but had been implanted with a Coloplast Virtue sling.

I was further shocked to learn that the Virtue sling had recently began clinical trials to determine, in part, if it was effective and if it could be tolerated in a human body.

For me, the multiple areas of pelvic pain, caused by the four armed Virtue sling, was continuous and absolutely intolerable. My scrotal skim felt like it had been boiled in hot oil and the lower arms of the Virtue sling, that were wrapped around my lower pelvic bones (pubic rami), cause additional pain that could be best described as pain from sitting on a broom handle.

To make matters worse, if that were possible, my pad usage increased from 1-2 pads (occasionally 3) pre-surgery to 4-6 pads immediately following surgery. My former enjoyable lifestyle was transformed into a living Hell where I felt like I was struggling to stay alive.

My suffering turned around last December. During a 3 1/2 hour surgery by a pelvic reconstruction specialist at The Cleveland Clinic, the Coloplast Virtue sling was surgically removed and, near the end of the surgery, I was implanted with American Medical System's AdVance sling.

The difference has been fantastic! I am pad free for the first time in ten years. I can do strenuous activities, cough, sneeze, blow my nose and do jumping jacks and not leak one drop. Urination has returned to 100% natural.

My pain situation is slowly improving. I am of the opinion the Virtue sling caused great trauma and possibly permanent damage to my scrotal nerves. The scrotal skin pain, originally severe to the touch, became mostly numb by the time of my December surgery. As the numbness continues to fade, the pain from touching is returning but bearable. I am just happy to have feeling in my skin again.

I have been following FDA's MAUDE Adverse Event Reports for Coloplast's Virtue sling. The last time I checked there were 23 adverse events listed that required intervention. Considering the relatively small number of Virtue slings implanted to date, to me, this seems like a concerningly high number of problems for a device designed to be permanently implanted.

I have corresponded with others who have had similar experiences with the Virtue sling, so my experience was not an isolated situation. I am interested in hearing from others that have suffered extended pain following sling surgery.

My email is: bigxbadxjohn2@yahoo.com

My message is not an attempt to discredit or discourage anyone from following their urologist advice regarding sling selection. The purpose of this message is to encourage anyone considering sling surgery to ask good hard questions covering all aspects of the devices and procerure including the urologist's history of successes(and failures) regarding sling implants.

Best wishes,

John