Zhang RR, Zhao RH, Zhang L, Ma RY, Chen MZ. Transvaginal sacrospinous ligament fixation: Efficacy in treating pelvic prolapse and influence on patients’ anxiety and depression. World J Psychiatry 2025; 15(12): 109546 [PMID: 41357940 DOI: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i12.109546]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Mei-Zhu Chen, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Gynaecology, Suzhou Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, No. 2666 Ludang Road, Taihu New Town, Wujiang District, Suzhou 215200, Jiangsu Province, China. mzch8964@163.com
Research Domain of This Article
Psychology
Article-Type of This Article
Retrospective Study
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Psychiatry. Dec 19, 2025; 15(12): 109546 Published online Dec 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i12.109546
Transvaginal sacrospinous ligament fixation: Efficacy in treating pelvic prolapse and influence on patients’ anxiety and depression
Rui-Rui Zhang, Rui-Heng Zhao, Lei Zhang, Ru-Yue Ma, Mei-Zhu Chen
Rui-Rui Zhang, Rui-Heng Zhao, Lei Zhang, Ru-Yue Ma, Mei-Zhu Chen, Department of Gynaecology, Suzhou Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Suzhou 215200, Jiangsu Province, China
Author contributions: Zhang RR and Chen MZ contributed to research and write a manuscript, analysis and provided guidance for the research; Zhao RH, Zhang L and Ma RY contributed to conceiving the research and analyzing data. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by 2023 Academy Level Research Start-up Fund, No. YK202333; 2024 Academy Level Research Start-up Fund, No. YK202430; Wujiang District, Suzhou City, “Promoting Health through Science and Education” Project, No. WWK202201; and Xuzhou Medical University Affiliated Hospital Development Fund Support Project, No. XYFY202423.
Institutional review board statement: This study has been approved by the Ethics Committee of Suzhou Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University.
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Mei-Zhu Chen, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Gynaecology, Suzhou Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, No. 2666 Ludang Road, Taihu New Town, Wujiang District, Suzhou 215200, Jiangsu Province, China. mzch8964@163.com
Received: July 11, 2025 Revised: August 18, 2025 Accepted: September 22, 2025 Published online: December 19, 2025 Processing time: 139 Days and 1.3 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) can lead to urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence, and other symptoms, affecting the quality of life, which results in anxiety and depression and other negative emotions in many patients. Trans-vaginal sacrospinous ligament suspension (VSSLS) involves securing the apex of the prolapsed vagina to the sacrospinous ligament to maintain the physiological axis of the vagina, help in repairing pelvic floor defects, and maintain the normal function of the pelvic floor, thereby alleviating patients’ anxiety and depression.
AIM
To explore the effect of VSSLS in the treatment of POP and its influence on anxiety and depression among patients.
METHODS
Sixty patients with moderate to severe POP who underwent surgical treatment between January 2023 and June 2024 in Suzhou Ninth Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University were retrospectively enrolled in the study. According to treatment methods, they were divided into the control group (n = 30, treated with vaginal hysterectomy alone) and observation group (n = 30, treated with VSSLS combined with vaginal hysterectomy). The two groups were compared by baseline data, perioperative indicators, and postoperative pain intensity, prolapse distance before and after surgery, sexual function, pelvic function, anxiety, and depression.
RESULTS
No significant differences in baseline data, preoperative POP Quantification measurement value, Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Inventory 20 (PFDI-20), Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire 7 (PFIQ-7), Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) scores were found between the two groups. The observation group had longer operation time and more intraoperative blood loss than the control group, the Visual Analog Scale score on postoperative day 1 was slightly higher in than in the control group. On the reexamination 3 months postoperatively, the POP Quantification measurement values in the observation group were lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Evaluation 6 months after surgery, the FSFI score was higher in the observation group than in the control group, the PFDI-20, PFIQ-7, SAS and SDS score scored were lower in than in the control group (P < 0.05). The PFDI-20, PFIQ-7 scores positively correlated with the SAS and SDS scores.
CONCLUSION
VSSLS demonstrated a significant effect on the treatment of moderate and severe POP, as it can reduce the prolapse distance and PFDI-20 and PFIQ-7 scores and improve anxiety and depression among patients.
Core Tip: Pelvic organ prolapse can cause lower back pain, sexual dysfunction, urinary incontinence, etc., resulting in anxiety and depression among patients. This study presents the vaginal sacrospinous ligament suspension technique, which secures the prolapsed vaginal apex to the sacrospinous ligament. This technique is advantageous for repairing pelvic floor defects, shortening prolapse distance, improving both sexual and pelvic function, and consequently alleviating anxiety and depression among patients.
