Delayed presentation and successful repair of a recurrent vesicovaginal fistula after hysterectomy and primary abdominal repair.

Urogenital fistulae are an uncommon consequence of gynecologic surgery. Vesicovaginal fistulae due to gynecologic surgery generally appear 1-6 weeks after surgery and recurrent fistulae within 3 months of their repair. The pathogenesis of vesicovaginal fistula formation remains unclear. We present the case of a 36-year-old woman with a spontaneously recurring vesicovaginal fistula 21 months after abdominal repair of a vesicovaginal fistula caused by a laparoscopic-assisted vaginal hysterectomy. During the repair of the fistula and excision of the vaginal cuff, two small fluid-filled cysts between the bladder mucosa and the vaginal epithelium were encountered. Vesicovaginal fistulae can occur spontaneously and remote from surgery. The finding of small fluid-filled cysts in the cuff suggests that rupture of a similar cyst may have led to the formation of the fistula.

Duke Scholars

Author Cindy Louise Amundsen Obstetrics and Gynecology, Urogynecology