Abstract:
Apparatus for forming an artificial tie or ligament between different internal parts within a mammalian body, the apparatus comprising a strip ( 10 ) of preferably mesh type fabric formed of a material which is suitable for remaining in the body, and a drawstring ( 12 ) which is looped between different points along the length of the strip ( 10 ). By drawing the drawstring ( 12 ) the length of the strip ( 10 ) can be reduced. Opposite ends of the strip ( 11, 13 ) are in use attached to the different internal parts, and then those parts can be pulled together by applying tension to the drawstring ( 12 ), and once the length of the strip ( 10 ) has been reduced, tying off the drawstring ( 12 ) to hold the strip ( 10 ) in its reduced length condition. The apparatus is specifically useful for use in a in a method of treating vault or vaginal prolapse. The invention extends to a method of treating vault or vaginal prolapse.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application is a national phase application and claims priority from PCT Application. No. PCT/AU02/00369, filed on Mar. 27, 2002, which claims priority from Australian Patent Application No. PR 4065, filed on Mar. 28, 2001. Both applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
   FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention relates to the treatment of vaginal or vault prolapse and to a device suitable for use in such treatment. The device might be used in other medical procedures. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Vault or vaginal prolapse is a condition which occurs in women who have undergone a medical procedure such as a hysterectomy which has resulted in the utero-sacral ligaments which hold the vagina in position within the body cavity being severed or damaged. The result of such damage is that the vagina has a tendency to invert which is uncomfortable and unhealthy, and renders the vagina unsuitable for intercourse. 
   The condition has in the past been treated using one of various different procedures. Abdominal colposacropexy for example involves abdominal surgery which is undesirable. Zacharin&#39;s abdominal operation is another documented procedure in which the vagina is attached directly to the pelvic floor. Vaginal enterocole repair involves the attachment of the vault to the ileococcygeus muscle followed by posterior repair. Petros&#39; infra-coccygeal sacropexy uses a nylon tape to “recreate” the utero-sacral ligaments. 
   Procedures performed via abdominal incision are particularly invasive and therefor not the preferred form of treatment. Procedures performed vaginally are however difficult to perform due to the close confines in which the procedure needs to be performed and the narrow passageway through which the surgeon must operate. It will be appreciated that attaching the distal end of the vagina to the pelvic floor in such a manner that the vagina is properly aligned and that the artificial ligaments thus created are of correct length and tension requires a great deal of skill and dexterity. An aim of the present invention is to facilitate the aforementioned vaginal procedure. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In broad terms the invention comprises a strip of fabric or mesh formed of a material adapted to remain within the body cavity after a procedure has been performed therewith, the strip incorporating a drawstring which extends between at least two points separated lengthwise along the strip, the drawstring being configured such that tension applied to the drawstring will assist in causing the length of the strip between the two points to be reduced. 
   Preferable the invention provides apparatus for forming an artificial tie or ligament between a first internal part, and a second, different, internal part, within a mammalian body, the apparatus comprising a strip of flexible material adapted to remain within the body after a procedure has been performed therewith, the strip incorporating a drawstring which extends between at least two points separated lengthwise along the strip, the drawstring being configured such that when one point has been attached to a first internal part of the body, and the other part point has been attached to a second internal part of the body, a tension applied to the drawstring will assist in causing the length of the strip between the two points to be reduced, and retain the strip in its reduced length condition, thereby forming said artificial tie or ligament between said first and second parts. 
   The strip is preferably made of a light mesh formed of an absorbable or non-absorbable thread. Suitable material might comprise proprietary materials such as Vypro™ or Prolene™ or Vycral™. The mesh openings are probably between 1 mm and 8 mm in diameter. 
   The drawstring is preferably threaded in and out, through the mesh openings, so that tension applied to the drawstring will tend to cause the strip to adopt a gathered configuration. The drawstring is preferably threaded in such a manner that the two ends of the drawstring are aligned parallel with each other and aligned with the length of the strip, the two ends being adapted to be tied together to retain the strip in its reduced length condition. The drawstring may be configured so that a mechanical advantage is obtained by applying tension to the drawstring. The configuration might comprise looping the drawstring at least twice between said points so that drawing the drawstring a certain length will reduce the length of the strip by half that length. 
   The strip may have a central region removed therefrom and the drawstring may be looped around said central region. 
   The invention extends to a method of treating vaginal prolapse which comprises attaching a strip of the type defined above between the pelvic floor and the vault, using the drawstring to reduce the length of the strip, thereby pulling the vault towards the pelvic floor, and tying the drawstring off to maintain the strip in its reduced length condition, thereby forming a tie between the vault and the pelvic floor. 
   In the preferred form of the invention two strips are attached in this manner to the pelvic floor, on opposite sides of the rectum from opposite sides of the vault. The strip or strips are preferably attached to the cardinal ligament area of the vault. 
   Where the procedure is performed vaginally it will first be necessary to open the posterior floor of the vagina to obtain access to the pelvic floor. 
   It will be appreciated that the strip of the invention could well have application in surgical procedures in addition to that of treatment of vault prolapse. 
   These and further features of the invention will be made apparent from the description of preferred embodiments thereof given below by way of example. In the description reference is made to the accompanying drawings, but the specific features shown in the drawings should not be construed as limiting on the invention. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  shows a plan view of a strip of mesh according to the invention; 
       FIG. 2  shows a plan view of another strip of mesh according to the invention; 
       FIG. 3  shows a perspective view of a strip according to the invention fixed in portion between two locations in a body, the strip being in its reduced length condition; 
       FIG. 4  shows a sectional side view of a patient with two strips according to the invention in place on opposite sides of the vagina; and 
       FIG. 5  shows a similar view to that of  FIG. 4  but with the strips in their reduced length condition after the drawstrings have been tightened and tied off. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
   Referring initially to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , a strip  10  according to the invention is formed of a length of mesh material which conveniently comprises a wide mesh formed of a Vypro thread and is adapted to be left permanently within the body as a permanent ligament. The strip  10  has a first end  11  which in use will be attached to the pelvic floor of a patient, and a second end  13  which in use will be attached to the vaginal wall of the patient. The manner in which the strip will be used is described in more detail below. 
   A drawstring  12  is threaded in and out though the mesh openings so as to form an M-shaped double loop, with the two free ends  14  of the drawstring extending parallel with each other towards the one end  13  of the strip. The effect of the drawstring being in this double loop configuration is that the drawstring connects together two points of the strip, numbered  16  and  18  in the drawings. It will be appreciated that pulling on the ends  14  of the drawstring will have the effect of shortening the two loops, causing the strip to gather or pleat between the two points  16  and  18 , thereby effectively shortening the strip. 
   The strip has a central portion  20  in which the mesh material has been removed, the central portion being located in the region of the strip between the two points  16  and  18 . Removing the mesh from the central portion has the effect of reducing the quantity of mesh material in the region of the strip which is gathered after pulling on the drawstring. 
   It will be appreciated that the double loop configuration of the drawstring is selected so that a mechanical advantage is obtained when pulling on the drawstring to thereby facilitate the shortening of the strip. Pulling the two ends of drawstring a set length will shorten the strip by half of that length. Of course, other configurations of drawstring threading will achieve a different mechanical effect. 
   In  FIG. 2  a similar strip  38  is depicted to that shown in  FIG. 1  but the drawstring  40  has only a single free end  42  whilst the other end  44  is secured to the mesh. The drawstring  40  is threaded through the mesh openings to form one and a half loops around the central opening  46  and pulling on the end  42  in the direction of arrow  48  will cause the drawstring to tighten around the central opening  46  thereby effectively reducing the length of the strip. A disadvantage of this embodiment is that tying off the drawstring is more difficult, but in some applications this might not be a problem and may be advantageous. 
     FIG. 2  also shows a variation in which the drawstring  40 A is not looped back around the opening  46  to terminate at its anchored end  44 . Rather, that portion of the drawstring has a free end  42 A so that the entire drawstring has a U-shaped configuration. The drawstring may optionally be anchored at the bight of the U. Tightening of the drawstring is achieved by pulling on the free-ends  42  and  42 A in the direction of arrows  48  and at the same time pushing on the mesh in the direction of arrow  49 . This is achieved by pushing the vaginal wall  26  towards the pelvic floor  28 , and thereafter tying off the free ends  42  and  42 A of the drawstring. 
   A yet further embodiment is illustrated in chain outline at  50 , and essentially represents a continuation of the drawstring  40  in mirror image having the mechanical advantage of that drawstring configuration with the added advantage of symmetrical gathering up of the mesh and the ability to tie off both free ends  42  and  51 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 3  of the drawings the strip  10  is attached via first end  11  to a first location point which, in the treatment of vault prolapse, will be the pelvic floor  28 . The other end  13  will be attached to the other attachment point which, in the treatment of vault prolapse, will be the vaginal wall  26 . It will be noted that the end  13  comprises a length of mesh material which is about half of the entire length of the strip  10 . The drawstring  12  is threaded through the first end  11  of the strip. Clearly, the second end  13  of the strip may be attached at any point along its length so as to be able to accommodate physiological differences in female patients. The commonest point of attachment of the mesh of the vaginal vault is adjacent the central opening  20 , that is, at location  16  on the mesh. The mesh may be reinforced at this point to provide for more secure attachment to the vaginal vault. Excess strip material can, if desired, be cut from the end  13  either prior to or during the attachment procedure. 
   Once the ends  11  and  13  have been attached to their respective locations in the body the drawstring  12  will be pulled up and the two ends tied off. It will be noted from  FIG. 3  that the end  11  has been gathered up, considerably reducing the overall length of the strip  10 . The gathered portion of the strip is indicated at numeral  15 . 
   In use for treatment of vault prolapse, two strips will be connected between opposite sides of the vagina and the pelvic floor. The arrangement is clearly shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5  of the drawings. 
   The first stage of the procedure is to open the posterior vaginal wall  26  to obtain access to the pelvic floor  28 . The pelvic floor  28  is exposed on either side of the rectum  30  thereby providing locations where two strips  10  can be attached to the pelvic floor. 
   The respective ends  11  of the two strips are then attached to the exposed locations on the pelvic floor by suturing. The sutures can simply attach the mesh material itself to the pelvic floor, but preferably the sutures pass around the drawstring so as to form a secure attachment point for the drawstring of each strip. Thereafter the other ends  13  of the two strips are attached to the cardinal ligament area on each side of the vault. Clearly, exactly where along the length of the strip the attachment to the vault is made will depend on the patient&#39;s physiology, and typically the actual attachment point will be some distance away from the distal end  13 . 
   Once both ends of both strips  10  have been attached between the pelvic floor and the vault the surgeon will begin closing the posterior vaginal wall. Once partially closed the drawstrings can be used to pull the vault closer to the pelvic floor. Pulling on the drawstrings will, as discussed above, shorten the strips, and since the strips connect the vault to the pelvic floor, the vault will effectively be pulled towards the pelvic floor. Since there are two strips, each with its respective drawstring, the surgeon can ensure that the vagina is correctly aligned and positioned. The drawstrings allow the final alignment and positioning to be done when the vaginal wall incision is partially closed making the whole operation that much easier to perform. 
   Once the vagina has been pulled into the correct position, the two ends of each drawstring will be tied together, thereby securing each strip in its reduced length condition, permanently holding the vagina in position. The strips are made from a material specifically adapted to be left in place in the body, and will in time form artificial ligaments connecting the vagina to the pelvic floor. 
   The posterior vaginal wall will then be completely closed and if required the perineal body can be refashioned. Very little if any vaginal mucosa need be excised. As mentioned above, it is desirable that the procedure is performed vaginally since this greatly reduces patient morbidity. 
     FIG. 5  depicts the two strips in position after the drawstrings have been tied off. 
   Clearly there may be many variations to the above described embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention. Clearly the strip can be configured differently to that described herein, and can be made of a different material. For example, the two individual strips  10  may converge at their base in the manner indicated in broken outline at  54  in  FIG. 3 , resulting in Y-shaped configuration with the individual drawstrings being fed through each arm of the Y. 
   As mentioned above, the drawstring can be threaded differently. However, the advantage of being able to pull the vagina into position at a relatively late stage of the operation will greatly facilitate achieving optimal alignment of the vagina, even though the operation is performed vaginally. 
   It is envisaged that a mesh or fabric in strip form will best be used to form the apparatus of the invention. However, it should be appreciated that in some applications a strip as such might not be necessary. For example, a longitudinally extending narrow tube might be used in some applications, or a chord-like elongate element might also be used. The drawstring will generally be connected to the ligament defining elongate element in such a way that relative sliding between the drawstring and the elongate element will result in the aforementioned length reduction of the elongate element, as the drawstring has tension applied to it. 
   The term “drawstring” as used herein is intended to have a broad interpretation and will include any filament that can be used to reduce the length of an element connected between two internal parts within a body. The term “tie” likewise is to be given broad interpretation and is used to describe a connector which is able to act under tension to hold two parts together. 
   It will be understood that the invention disclosed and defined herein extends to all alternative combinations of two or more of the individual features mentioned or evident from the text or drawings. All of these different combinations constitute various alternative aspects of the invention. 
   The foregoing describes embodiments of the present invention and modifications, obvious to those skilled in the art can be made thereto, without departing from the scope of the present invention.