When a person has pelvic surgery, he undergoes a surgical procedure to correct problem in the organs or structures in his pelvic region. For example, an individual may have pelvic surgery for urinary incontinence or to repair damage to the pelvic organs that was caused by some type of trauma. A person may also have pelvic surgery to remove an organ, such as in a hysterectomy, or to correct a weakened pelvic floor, such as in pelvic organ prolapse. Sometimes people also have pelvic surgery as part of treatment for a condition or serious disease, such as cancer. Pelvic surgery may even be used to treat conditions that affect the nerves of a person's pelvis.

A person may have surgery of the pelvis to treat conditions in the reproductive organs. For example, a woman may have surgery that involves her uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes, or cervix. She may even have surgery that involves the non-visible part of the vagina. For a man, the pelvic structures involved in reproducing are the penis, scrotum, testicle, epididymis, urethra, van deferens, and seminal vesicle. A doctor may perform pelvic surgery to correct a range of problems or abnormalities with any of these organs, treat infertility, or even to treat cancer.

Often, pelvic surgery is used to treat bladder problems. For example, doctors may use surgical techniques to treat a person who has bladder stones or is suffering from a bladder obstruction. Sometimes this type of surgery may be performed to correct problems that cause the bladder to function improperly. In the case of cancer, a doctor may even remove all or part of the bladder and then use surgical techniques to provide the body with a new way to release urine. Surgery of the pelvis may even be used to reconstruct a person's bladder.

Sometimes surgeons perform this type of surgery to treat problems with incontinence. Surgeons may use a range of surgical techniques to treat urinary incontinence. An individual may also suffer from incontinence that is related to his rectum and anus. This type of surgery may be used to correct bowel incontinence as well.

Another common type of pelvic surgery is pelvic prolapse surgery. Pelvic prolapse is a condition that is marked by a weakened pelvic floor that allows the pelvic organs to drop out of their normal position. For example, the bladder may start to descend and actually protrude into the vagina. Fortunately, there are effective surgical techniques that may be used to correct pelvic prolapse as well.