title: Does episiotomy influence vaginal resting pressure, pelvic floor muscle strength and endurance, and prevalence of urinary incontinence 6 weeks postpartum?
abstract: The aim of the present study was to compare vaginal resting pressure (VRP), pelvic floor muscle (PFM) strength and endurance, and prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) at 6 weeks postpartum, in women with and without lateral or mediolateral episiotomy.
  
  
  
  Two hundred and thirty-eight nulliparous pregnant women, mean age 28.5 years (SD 4.2) and pre-pregnancy BMI 23.8 (SD 4.0) participated in the study. Lateral or mediolateral episiotomy was only performed for indications such as fetal distress or imminent risk of severe perineal tear. At 6 weeks postpartum, a vaginal balloon connected to a high precision pressure transducer was used to measure VRP (cm H2O), PFM strength (cm H2O), and endurance (cm H2O sec). All women completed the International Classification of Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICIQ-UI-SF) by means of an electronic questionnaire.
  
  
  
  No statistically significant differences were found in VRP (mean difference 0.0 cm H2O, 95%CI: -2.1 to 2.1), PFM strength (mean difference 1.3 cm H2O, 95%CI: -1.9 to 4.6), or PFM endurance (mean difference 12.1 cm H2O sec, 95%CI: -11.0 to 35.1) between women with or without episiotomy. No significant differences were found in prevalence of UI (37.5% vs. 46.6%) or SUI (23.6% vs. 35.6%), between women with or without episiotomy, respectively.
  
  
  
  PFM function and/or prevalence of post-partum UI were not affected by a lateral or mediolateral episiotomy. Neurourol. Urodynam. 36:683-686, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sports Medicine, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.|Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway.
authors.forename: Kari
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bø
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway.
authors.forename: Gunvor
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hilde
authors.affiliation: Department of Sports Medicine, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Merete Kolberg
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Tennfjord
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway.|Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Akershus University Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Marie Ellstrøm
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Engh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004841:Episiotomy / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D017773:Pelvic Floor / Q000503:physiopathology*; D049590:Postpartum Period; D011247:Pregnancy; D015995:Prevalence; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D014621:Vagina / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: episiotomy; pelvic floor muscles; strength; urinary incontinence; vaginal resting pressure