Abstract
PosterSessionC_26 - Assessment of Travel Burden for Male Continence Surgery
Urology (Ridgewood, N.J.), Vol.206(Supplement), pp.74-74
12/2025
DOI: 10.1016/j.urology.2025.11.172
Abstract
Objective: Access to male stress urinary incontinence (SUI) surgery is limited by the low number of performing urologists. Prior studies show substantial travel distances for erectile restoration surgery, data on travel patterns for SUI surgery are lacking. This study evaluates travel patterns of male Medicare beneficiaries undergoing SUI surgery.
Methods: Patients receiving incontinence surgeries from 2016-2022 were identified in the 100% Medicare Standard Analytical files. Travel distance was calculated from each patient's county of residence to the treatment county and the nearest county offering SUI surgery, using GPS coordinates. Facility procedure volumes at the treating and nearest facility were obtained. The association between patient- and county-level characteristics and the distance to the treating facility relative to the nearest facility was analyzed using Poisson regression. County-level factors, such as population and per-capita income were sourced from the 2019 Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Social Determinants of Health Database.
Results: Among the 4,931 men who underwent SUI surgery, 66.3% (3,267/4,931) lived in counties offering SUI surgery; however, 66.0% (2,156/3,267) received care within their county of residence. The remaining 1,111 patients traveled a median distance of 32.2 miles (IQR: 22.9-58.2). Overall, 40.0% (1,968/4,931) underwent SUI surgery at a facility that was further. Treating facilities had a significantly higher annual volume than the nearest facility (3.3 vs. 1.0, p<0.001). Among patients who traveled outside their county, the median distance was 35.7 miles, with the top quintile traveling an average of 266.5 miles. Men were more likely to travel if they were White, from the South, had fewer comorbidities, from higher-income counties, or if the nearest facility had a lower surgical volume.
Conclusion: While most men undergoing SUI surgery had access to care locally, many traveled to receive surgery. This suggests that distance to the facility is only one factor impacting patient surgical choice.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- PosterSessionC_26 - Assessment of Travel Burden for Male Continence Surgery
- Creators
- Alexandria HertzKathryn MorrisRyoko SatoJonathan SeamanSteven HudakMaia Vandyke
- Resource Type
- Abstract
- Publication Details
- Urology (Ridgewood, N.J.), Vol.206(Supplement), pp.74-74
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.urology.2025.11.172
- ISSN
- 0090-4295
- eISSN
- 1527-9995
- Publisher
- Elsevier Inc
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 12/2025
- Academic Unit
- Urology
- Record Identifier
- 9985093924502771
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