Six hundred eighty patients surgically treated for stress urinary incontinence were observed annually for up to ten years to compare the efficacy and complications of three types of repair procedures. Although Marshall-Marchetti-Krantz procedures yielded the most effective repair in the immediate postoperative period, Kelly plications were equally corrective more than three years after surgery (69 and 66%, respectively). Both were superior to the original Pereyra urethropexies at all times. Repeat operations were more likely to fail than primary repairs. The efficacy of the Pereyra procedure was increased with the use of permanent suture. Marshall-Marchetti-Krantz procedures were not affected by suture selection. Pereyra procedures had more complications, many related to intravesical suture. Success rates of all procedures declined steadily with lengthening periods of observation. We conclude that Kelly plications and Marshall-Marchetti-Krantz procedures have similar long-term efficacy and complication rates. The use of intra-operative cystoscopy and permanent suture with the Pereyra procedure might make it competitive.