A damaged sphincter is in most cases the main cause of stress urinary incontinence, the sphincter is the muscle that tightens to controls urinary flow. A revolutionary new surgery could help this muscle regain its normal activity.

This promising new Incontinence treatment is been tested by Canadian doctors and is described as muscle cell injection therapy, doctors first take a biopsy of the leg muscle to isolate muscle stem cells and get them to multiply and then inject those cells into the sphincter muscle while the patient is under local aesthetic.

Of the 29 women who participated in a study by Dr. Carr and associates, 68 per cent said their quality of life was improved and 61 per cent said their urinary leakage was reduced and symptoms improved three months after the first injection.

Even though this procedure is a few years away from becoming a routine procedure Dr. Carr stated that safety is not a concern and said:

"This is just a muscle cell. The safety of these types of cells is much greater than other types of stem cells,"

And added:

"I think this kind of restorative medicine and using stem cells is the future."

This new procedure could be a solution to one in every three women with stress urinary incontinence.