A resident of Var has paid the price... An association is calling for a ban on bandages used against incontinence

The Diva association (vaginal implant devices), whose members say they are victims of complications related to these implants used against urinary incontinence, was received on Tuesday, June 24, at the Ministry of Health where it requested the banning of a certain type of strip.

The use of strips to treat urinary leaks linked to coughing, laughing or physical exertion, placed under the urethra passing through the groin muscles, has been regularly questioned since 2016 due to the risk of complications .

Complications—due in particular to a bodily reaction or improper placement—range from urinary tract infections, injuries, or chronic pain that prevents walking, sitting, or having sexual relations. These devices, which contain polypropylene, gradually become embedded in the tissues, and their removal, while difficult, can be mutilating.

In March 2025, Sandra Hernandez, a resident of Callas , told Var-Matin how her life had changed after such an operation in September 2017, in a clinic in Saint-Raphaël. It led to multiple complications, including the inability to work as a nursing assistant...

A less risky removable device?

Diva is calling for "a ban on the use of TOT slings" and is advocating a "return to previous procedures" such as Burch surgery, which does not require implants, or the use of the natural sheath of the thigh muscle (fascia lata) to support the urethra, its co-president, Karine Prou, told AFP.

As an alternative to vaginal implants, the association offers the pessary, a removable "donut-shaped" device inserted into the vagina to support the pelvic organs.

The authorities must "become aware" of the problem: we must " stop giving these implants to women" and "make people believe that it is a benign operation," said Stéphanie Dupin, the other co-president of Diva, an association formerly known as the Vaginal Implants Collective, which brings together more than 1,000 people.

A call to relaunch medical research

These two presidents, themselves victims of complications related to the strips, conveyed their message to several representatives of the General Directorate of Healthcare Provision (DGOS) and the General Directorate of Health, during a meeting lasting more than two hours at the Ministry of Health, alongside urological surgeon Benoit Peyronnet, a specialist in the removal of these strips, and a member of France Assos Santé, which represents patients.

There was also talk of "certification" for surgeons to install these implants, Ms. Dupin emphasized at the end of the meeting.

The association calls for "relaunching medical research" on the subject and also requests monitoring of the application of the decrees of April 25, 2025, which govern the installation of suburethral slings.