Patent ID: 8216124

Claim:
A system for treating urinary incontinence (UI), the system comprising: a strip of mesh having a primary axis and a secondary axis orthogonal to and coplanar with the primary axis; a first end and a second end, the first end and the second end being located at opposite ends of the primary axis; a first surface located on a first side of the strip, said first surface for providing support to the urethra of a patient under treatment for UI; and a second surface located on a second side of the strip opposite the first surface; a first fastener including at least one barb, said first fastener coupled to the first end of the strip; a second fastener including at least one barb, said second fastener coupled to the second end of the strip; a plurality of cords, each cord of the plurality of cords coupled to the strip for extracting the strip when desired; a first aperture in the second surface of the strip and located closer to the first end of the strip than to the second end of the strip, a diameter of the first aperture exceeding a diameter of any aperture in a regular pattern of apertures formed by the mesh; and a second aperture in the second surface of the strip and located closer to the second end of the strip than to the first end of the strip, a diameter of the second aperture exceeding the diameter of any aperture in the regular pattern of apertures formed by the mesh, wherein the first aperture and the second aperture do not extend through the first surface of the strip, wherein the mesh forms a first support shelf in the first aperture and a second support shelf in the second aperture, each support shelf being closer to the first surface of the strip than to second surface of the strip.