Operationalizing Postdischarge Recovery From Laparoscopic Sacrocolpopexy for the Preoperative Consultative Visit

One of the most common questions from patients following surgery is: "What is my expected recovery time?" The answer serves as a benchmark to assess their progress against those undergoing similar procedures. Not addressing this expectation can result in poor patient satisfaction. In women who underwent laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy for pelvic organ prolapse, the trajectory for postoperative recovery has been established and is measured by the Postdischarge Surgical Recovery (PSR13) scale. The aim of this study was to determine the threshold for recovery time for women who undergo laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy for pelvic organ prolapse. This was a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study of 171 women undergoing laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy for stage 2 or worse pelvic organ prolapse. The women were recruited from a urogynecology practice affiliated with a university from December 2013 to October 2016. On days 7, 14, 42, and 90 after discharge, the women completed a 15-minute survey to measure recovery via PSR13. For comparison, the women also completed a Global Surgical Recovery (GSR) measurement, ranking their recovery on a scale of 0% to 100%, with 100% representing a return to their usual health. To determine the degree of recovery, GSR scores were collected in 4 ranges (80% to <85%, 85% to <90%, 90% to <95%, and 95% to 100%). Weighted mean PSR13 scores were calculated as the sum of variables when patients considered themselves recovered in 1 of the 4 GSR ranges. A comparison of the GSR scores and weighted mean PSR13 scores was used to determine the distribution of women who recovered at each of the postoperative time points. The 85% to <90% GSR range held the most frequent distribution of women in the study, corresponding to a weighted PSR13 score of 79.2. This suggests that a PSR score of 80 or greater is representative of "significant" recovery after discharge from laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy. On days 42 and 90, "significant recovery" was reported by 55.56% and 50.88% of women, respectively. Only 16.37% reported "significant" recovery at day 14. In conclusion, a PSR13 score of 80 or greater represented the threshold for "significant" recovery after laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy at days 42 and 90. This information can be used by clinicians to help manage patients' expectations for recovery after undergoing this procedure for pelvic organ prolapse.