What Is an FPMRS Specialist?
An FPMRS specialist is a urologist (or gynecologist) who has completed an additional 2–3 year ACGME-accredited fellowship in Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery. This is one of only two formally accredited urology fellowships. These specialists are experts in female urinary problems, pelvic floor disorders, and the complex interplay between the bladder, urethra, and pelvic organs in women.
What Conditions Does an FPMRS Specialist Treat?
- Stress urinary incontinence (leaking urine when coughing, sneezing, laughing, or exercising)
- Urge incontinence and overactive bladder (sudden, strong urges to urinate with or without leaking)
- Mixed incontinence (a combination of stress and urge incontinence)
- Pelvic organ prolapse — when the bladder, uterus, or rectum drops down into the vaginal canal (cystocele, rectocele, uterine prolapse, vaginal vault prolapse)
- Interstitial cystitis / bladder pain syndrome (chronic bladder pain and pressure)
- Recurrent urinary tract infections in women
- Urethral diverticulum (an abnormal pouch along the urethra)
- Vesicovaginal fistula (an abnormal connection between the bladder and vagina)
- Mesh complications from prior pelvic surgery
- Neurogenic bladder in women
What Procedures Does an FPMRS Specialist Perform?
FPMRS specialists perform a wide range of procedures including midurethral sling surgery (TVT, TOT) for stress incontinence, urethral bulking injections (Bulkamid), sling revision and mesh removal, pelvic organ prolapse repair (colporrhaphy, vaginal vault suspension), robotic or open sacrocolpopexy, sacral neuromodulation (InterStim), percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS), Botox injections into the bladder, urethral diverticulectomy, fistula repair, and pessary fitting. They also coordinate pelvic floor physical therapy and behavioral treatments.
Who Should See an FPMRS Specialist?
Women experiencing urinary leakage, pelvic pressure or bulging, chronic bladder pain, recurrent UTIs, or complications from prior pelvic surgery should consider seeing an FPMRS specialist. This subspecialty is specifically designed for female pelvic floor and bladder conditions.