FiLaC laser therapy for anal fistulas - maintaining continence even after delivery in complex fistulas

The surgical treatment of anal fistulas is usually a particular challenge, as many fistula tracts run between or through the internal and external sphincter muscle. So-called complex fistulas, which have a high incontinence rate due to their location and course, are very difficult to treat. These include, for example, fistulas located far forward (anterior) in women. These are particularly delicate after childbirth, when the sphincter muscle has been heavily strained anyway. The uncontrolled secretions that result are a heavy psychological burden for the women affected.

However, there is now a particularly gentle method with which anal fistulas and especially such complex fistulas can be treated effectively. In biolitec's FiLaC laser therapy, a laser probe is inserted directly into the fistula tract via a puncture. It irradiates and destroys the inflamed tissue there by means of laser energy and closes the duct like a zipper when it is retracted. Due to the enormous precision of the laser therapy, the sphincter muscle and the surrounding tissue are optimally protected and continence can be maintained.

Incontinence, however, is not only a concomitant of complex fistulas, but also frequently occurs as a consequence of regular treatment of anal fistulas. A survey in the dissertation "Clinical long-term course after surgical treatment of anal fistulas" by proctologist Filimon Antonakis (Marburg, 2010) showed continence disturbance in more than 21% of 147 patients operated on and later examined. Even though men are clearly more frequently affected by the disease, "only" 18.6% of men suffered from continence disorders during the healing process after the operation, while in women a total of 31.6% of those treated were affected.* Since anal fistulas do not heal by themselves but have to be treated, the FiLaC method represents a minimally invasive alternative that can preserve the function of the sphincter muscle in the best possible way.

*Antonakis, Filimon: Long-term clinical course after surgical treatment of anal fistulas. Marburg 2010, p. 103.