Introduction: Childbirth entails many physical, emotional, and societal changes and repercussions, including postpartum depression affecting 20% - 30%, postpartum blues, and post-traumatic stress disorder. We hypothes...Introduction: Childbirth entails many physical, emotional, and societal changes and repercussions, including postpartum depression affecting 20% - 30%, postpartum blues, and post-traumatic stress disorder. We hypothesized that many physical and mental health manifestations of pelvic floor disorders might be masked by the ordinary course of postpartum recovery and not referred out for specialized evaluation. Leveraging our RECOUP (Mothers’ Pelvic Floor Support) Clinic, we explored the referral patterns to this clinic to test our hypothesis. Methods: The study is a single-center observational study including women who presented to the RECOUP Clinic. The clinic’s target patient population includes those with a perineal injury, instrumental delivery, urinary retention, urinary or fecal incontinence, pain, or pelvic pressure associated with childbirth. Results: One hundred and one women were evaluated in the RECOUP Clinic. 45/101 (45%) were not referred but found their way to the clinic through social media and the internet. Very few patients 4/101 (4%) were referred with anal sphincter injuries. (52/101, 51%) were referred after many requests by the patients. Conclusions: Over ninety percent of women evaluated at RECOUP Clinic are self-referred or referred upon the mother’s request. There is an opportunity for physicians and other providers to become more familiar with dedicated clinics for postpartum pelvic floor care. Enhancing such clinical services allows one to reach patients who otherwise will go unserved. Summary: Childbirth is an event with substantial ramifications that should be addressed, and we believe a specialized clinic is an optimal facility, so the RECOUP was founded. In this paper, we explored the referral patterns to our RECOUP clinic.展开更多
Pelvic floor dysfunction is a common morbidity with a negative impact on quality of life. These disorders include multiple clinical conditions which range from urinary and defecatory disorders to sexual disorders, aff...Pelvic floor dysfunction is a common morbidity with a negative impact on quality of life. These disorders include multiple clinical conditions which range from urinary and defecatory disorders to sexual disorders, affecting 24% of women. Since the pelvic floor is one of the most complex regions in the human body, in order to perform an accurate diagnosis, it is important to combine history taking, physical examination and imaging. While in the past, diagnosis of pelvic floor dysfunction was done using history taking and physical examination alone, it had been recognized the need for imaging as well. In the last decades different imaging modalities have been in use, including magnetic resonance imaging and computerized tomography scanning and, nowadays, the use of ultrasonography is gaining popularity. Ultrasound technology is evolving, with technology for 3D, 4D, Doppler and more, making it optimal for pelvic floor imaging. In this paper we review the different ultrasound modalities for pelvic floor imaging. The purpose of this review is to introduce the emerging ultrasound technologies for pelvic floor imaging including volume render mode, fusion imaging, framing, motion tracking and color vector mapping and elastography. The different ultrasonography modalities have resulted to be very useful for the diagnosis and assessment of pelvic floor dysfunctions, they are characterized by availability, short time, low cost, and radiation free. However, the effectiveness of the analysis is operator-dependent.展开更多
Urinary incontinence markedly affects women’s quality of life. There are several methods to mitigate or reduce this problem such as medication, surgery, or exercises. Of various types of urinary incontinence, overact...Urinary incontinence markedly affects women’s quality of life. There are several methods to mitigate or reduce this problem such as medication, surgery, or exercises. Of various types of urinary incontinence, overactive bladder consists of one category, which is often resistant to various treatments. Electrical stimulation methods have been considered a treatment option of overactive bladder. We here briefly summarize various treatment options for urinary incontinence, with special reference to the role of electrical stimulation methods for this disease. Electrical stimulation methods include vaginal electrical stimulation (VES), posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) and sacral nerve stimulation (SNS). The three methods have shown good results, and these findings will contribute to achieving a better quality of life for patients.展开更多
文摘Introduction: Childbirth entails many physical, emotional, and societal changes and repercussions, including postpartum depression affecting 20% - 30%, postpartum blues, and post-traumatic stress disorder. We hypothesized that many physical and mental health manifestations of pelvic floor disorders might be masked by the ordinary course of postpartum recovery and not referred out for specialized evaluation. Leveraging our RECOUP (Mothers’ Pelvic Floor Support) Clinic, we explored the referral patterns to this clinic to test our hypothesis. Methods: The study is a single-center observational study including women who presented to the RECOUP Clinic. The clinic’s target patient population includes those with a perineal injury, instrumental delivery, urinary retention, urinary or fecal incontinence, pain, or pelvic pressure associated with childbirth. Results: One hundred and one women were evaluated in the RECOUP Clinic. 45/101 (45%) were not referred but found their way to the clinic through social media and the internet. Very few patients 4/101 (4%) were referred with anal sphincter injuries. (52/101, 51%) were referred after many requests by the patients. Conclusions: Over ninety percent of women evaluated at RECOUP Clinic are self-referred or referred upon the mother’s request. There is an opportunity for physicians and other providers to become more familiar with dedicated clinics for postpartum pelvic floor care. Enhancing such clinical services allows one to reach patients who otherwise will go unserved. Summary: Childbirth is an event with substantial ramifications that should be addressed, and we believe a specialized clinic is an optimal facility, so the RECOUP was founded. In this paper, we explored the referral patterns to our RECOUP clinic.
文摘Pelvic floor dysfunction is a common morbidity with a negative impact on quality of life. These disorders include multiple clinical conditions which range from urinary and defecatory disorders to sexual disorders, affecting 24% of women. Since the pelvic floor is one of the most complex regions in the human body, in order to perform an accurate diagnosis, it is important to combine history taking, physical examination and imaging. While in the past, diagnosis of pelvic floor dysfunction was done using history taking and physical examination alone, it had been recognized the need for imaging as well. In the last decades different imaging modalities have been in use, including magnetic resonance imaging and computerized tomography scanning and, nowadays, the use of ultrasonography is gaining popularity. Ultrasound technology is evolving, with technology for 3D, 4D, Doppler and more, making it optimal for pelvic floor imaging. In this paper we review the different ultrasound modalities for pelvic floor imaging. The purpose of this review is to introduce the emerging ultrasound technologies for pelvic floor imaging including volume render mode, fusion imaging, framing, motion tracking and color vector mapping and elastography. The different ultrasonography modalities have resulted to be very useful for the diagnosis and assessment of pelvic floor dysfunctions, they are characterized by availability, short time, low cost, and radiation free. However, the effectiveness of the analysis is operator-dependent.
文摘Urinary incontinence markedly affects women’s quality of life. There are several methods to mitigate or reduce this problem such as medication, surgery, or exercises. Of various types of urinary incontinence, overactive bladder consists of one category, which is often resistant to various treatments. Electrical stimulation methods have been considered a treatment option of overactive bladder. We here briefly summarize various treatment options for urinary incontinence, with special reference to the role of electrical stimulation methods for this disease. Electrical stimulation methods include vaginal electrical stimulation (VES), posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) and sacral nerve stimulation (SNS). The three methods have shown good results, and these findings will contribute to achieving a better quality of life for patients.
