Observation of levator ani muscle contractility in postpartum women by ultrasound

VernacularTitle:产后不同时期女性肛提肌收缩功能的超声评价
Author: Yun BAI ; Feifei LIU ; Qin LI ; Lian XU ; Bing HU ; Tao YING
Publication Type:Journal Article
Keywords: Ultrasonography; Pelvic floor; Levator ani muscle; Postpartum female
From: Chinese Journal of Ultrasonography 2015;(7):597-600
CountryChina
Language:Chinese
Abstract: Objective To evaluate the changes of levator ani muscle contractility in different postpartum periods by observing the contractility of postpartum women's levator ani muscle.Methods Forty-six postpartum women and 43 nulliparous women were included in the object.All of those went through translabial pelvic floor ultrasound examinations.Images of their levator hiatus would be recorded at the conditions of rest and contraction.The hiatal length (L)and the area (A)of levator hiatus were measured,then the differences were obtained between rest and contraction conditions,recording as ΔL andΔA.Relevant data were analyzed.Results There was no obvious statistical difference of L and A between the groups (P >0.05).The ΔL and ΔA of the 6-8 weeks were the minimum in this objective(P <0.05). However,there was no statistical difference between nulliparous women and the postpartum 6-8 month's women(P >0.05).Conclusions After delivery,the contractility of levator ani muscle became weaker,but could recovery effectively after about half a year.