Effect of Preoperative Kegel Exercises on Continence Rates After Open Radical Prostatectomy

Objective: To reveal the effect of preoperative Kegel exercises on early period continence rates after open radical prostatectomy Materials and Methods: Data of patients with open radical prostatectomy between January 2019 and July 2022, in a tertiary academic health center were retrospectively reviewed.Patient' characteristics, perioperative parameters and postoperative follow-up results were recorded.Patients were divided into two groups as those who did Kegel exercises in the preoperative period and those who did not, and groups were compared.Results: There were 38 patients in the Kegel exercise group and 40 patients in the other group.Postoperative 1st month and postoperative 3rd month incontinence rates were similar between the groups (p=0.406, and p=0.387).At 6th months postoperatively, the rate of incontinence in the Kegel group was 7.9%, while it was 25.0% in the other group (p=0.043).Similarly, the rate of incontinence at 1st year postoperatively was significantly lower in the Kegel group (5.3% vs 20.0%, p=0.001).At 6 months postoperatively, the QoL score in the Kegel positive group was 86, while it was 65 in the other group (p=0.001).In the postoperative 1st year controls, the quality of life (QoL) score was statistically significantly higher in patients with preoperative Kegel exercise (p=0.001).Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that preoperative Kegel exercises had a significant positive effect on continence rate after radical prostatectomy in the postoperative 6th month and in the first year follow-up, and preoperative Kegel exercises were significantly associated with higher quality of life scores at 6th months and 1st year follow-up.