text: New lease of life: Karen Bane with her daughter Jessica after undergoing the alternative procedure . It is a painful and embarrassing condition that affects millions of British women. Pelvic organ prolapse, or POP, occurs when tissue supporting the pelvic organs – including the womb – becomes weak, typically after childbirth. Complications include an uncomfortable dragging or ‘full’ feeling, discomfort during sex or stress incontinence. Although up to half of women are thought to suffer to some degree, far fewer seek help, and many who do are offered just one solution: a hysterectomy. While surgical removal of the reproductive organs solves the immediate problem, it also ends fertility, and with three months of recovery needed, it is no quick fix. Now, a leading gynaecologist has claimed thousands of patients may be undergoing the drastic operation needlessly. He is one of a growing number of surgeons who claim not enough women are offered the alternative: a half-hour keyhole procedure that uses an implanted mesh ‘sling’ made from nylon to lift and hold the womb back in place, providing a permanent solution to a prolapse and preserving fertility. The procedure, called a sacrohysteropexy, is rare, with just 1,072 admissions for the surgery in the past three years. By contrast, there were 145,310 admissions to hospitals in England in the past three years for hysterectomies due to conditions such as fibroids, pelvic pain or cancer, according to the Health and Social Care Information Centre. Surgeon Jonathan Broome, who has performed more than 1,000 sacrohysteropexies in the past 15 years, has called for the option to be made more widely available on the NHS so women of child-bearing age are not forced to choose between quality of life or the chance to have children. ‘Most women requiring surgery for a prolapse will be referred for a hysterectomy by their GP,’ says Mr Broome, who performs the £4,000 procedure for both NHS and private patients at hospitals in Lancashire and Greater Manchester. ‘That means some women are faced with the dilemma of living a normal life without a prolapse, or the possibility of having children. 'Far too many GPs recommend hysterectomies as the solution to a prolapse, when a sacrohysteropexy is a much better alternative. It’s a shorter operation, with shorter recovery time because it is less invasive, and fertility is not put at risk.’ Pelvic organ prolapse, or POP, occurs when tissue supporting the pelvic organs – including the womb – becomes weak, typically after childbirth (file image) Common causes of prolapse include childbirth, lower levels of oestrogen at menopause, being overweight and chronic illnesses such as lung diseases, which create pressure inside the abdomen from coughing. Half of women over 50 will have symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse and more than one in ten will have had surgery for the problem by the age of 80. Concerns have been raised about the use of mesh implants in gynaecological procedures, with some women in Scotland and the US complaining of problems including bleeding and infections. But consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Clive Spence-Jones says the risk of complications where mesh is inserted abdominally is very small. Medical watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has received two reports of adverse incidents relating to a sacrohysteropexy since 2011. ●A sacrohysteropexy is keyhole surgery performed under general anaesthetic to put the womb back into its normal position. ●Tiny cuts are made in the stomach through which a telescope and instruments are passed. ●A piece of mesh is inserted via an incision along the bikini line. Using tiny needles, one end of the mesh is attached to the back of the cervix and the other to the coccyx, and it is fixed with metal staples. The mesh is also covered with a thin layer of tissue to prevent scar tissue forming, encouraging the tissue to grow and make the repair stronger. ●It can stay in place indefinitely and does not require a repeat operation. ●The procedure takes half an hour and involves an overnight stay in hospital. Mr Spence-Jones agrees that too many women are given the wrong advice on what surgery is right for them. ‘There seems to be a notion in general practice that taking everything – in other words, a hysterectomy – is the answer to a prolapse, when that isn’t the case,’ he says. ‘Sparing the fertility is a reason for considering procedures other than a hysterectomy, but not the only one.’ One woman who says her life has been transformed by a sacrohysteropexy is 44-year-old mother- of-two Karen Bane, from Lancashire. She suffered feelings of bloatedness following the birth of her daughters Gabrielle, seven, and Jessica, five. ‘I felt sluggish – I had back pain, sitting was uncomfortable and intercourse was painful. I’d also started to have leakage. It was mortifying being a woman in my early 40s and not being able to control my bladder. ‘I put up with the symptoms for five years, but when I started to have bleeding, I knew enough was enough. I was a mother of two young children, yet all I could see were years of misery in front of me.’ Karen went to her GP with her symptoms in May 2014 and was referred to Mr Broome. He performed the procedure at Euxton Hall Hospital in Chorley, Lancashire, last October. Karen says the procedure has given her a new lease of life. ‘I can run, skip and hula-hoop with my daughters without giving it a second thought,’ she explains. ‘I feel so much more feminine since my operation – my only battle scars are tiny nicks on my stomach. And because I had a sacrohysteropexy rather than a hysterectomy, everything is still there. It’s not something we are planning to do as we feel our family is complete, but the chance to have another child has not been taken away from me.’ Why should I take... Creatine . Creatine is a compound found in muscle tissue that increases the body’s ability to produce energy, and is often used by athletes to boost performance during high-intensity exercise. But there is evidence that taking 5g of creatine daily can deliver a short-term boost to brain power. An Australian study involving 45 volunteers found that those who took creatine for six weeks performed better in IQ and memory tests than those who were given a placebo. Fish and red meat are good natural sources. Ask a stupid question... Beauty & Go Bioactive Beauty Drinks . You don’t just rub on moisturiser these days – you can drink it too. These fruity drinks deliver collagen proteins, hyaluronic acid and antioxidants in four ‘flavours’: Vitality, Detox, Anti-Ageing and Radiance. 250ml, £2.99, selfridges.com . Can you smell when it's going to rain? Professor Barry Smith, founder of the Centre for the Study of the Senses at the University of London, says: ‘Yes you can. Air pressure falls and humidity increases when it is about to rain, and our noses act like a barometer, picking up these subtle changes in the air. ‘Humidity makes smells more intense. The smell gets stronger still when rain starts to fall, as droplets of water will pick up molecules from the surface they hit – such as grass or dirt – and carry them into the air.’
target: Pelvic organ prolapse occurs when tissue in the womb becomes weak .
  Many who suffer the painful condition are only offered hysterectomies .
  But the surgical removal of reproductive organs ends fertility in patients .
  Now one gynaecologist claims thousands undergo operation needlessly .
  Jonathan Broome says more should be offered half-hour key hole surgery .
  Sacrohysteropexy uses a sling to lift and hold the womb back in place .