Pelvic floor muscle injury during a difficult labor. Can tissue fatigue damage play a role?

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2021

Authors

Pouca, MCPV (Author) Other; Parente, MPL (Author) FEUP; Renato Natal Jorge (Author) FEUP; DeLancey, JOL (Author) Other; Ashton Miller, JA (Author) Other

Journal

Title: International Urogynecology Journal

Vol. 33

Pages: 211-220

ISSN: 0937-3462

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus - 0 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00V-QTT

DOI: 10.1007/s00192-021-05012-5

Abstract (EN): Pubovisceral muscle (PVM) injury during a difficult vaginal delivery leads to pelvic organ prolapse later in life. If one could address how and why the muscle injury originates, one might be able to better prevent these injuries in the future. In a recent review we concluded that many atraumatic injuries of the muscle-tendon unit are consistent with it being weakened by an accumulation of passive tissue damage during repetitive loading. While the PVM can tear due to a single overstretch at the end of the second stage of labor we hypothesize that it can also be weakened by an accumulation of microdamage and then tear after a series of submaximal loading cycles. We conclude that there is strong indirect evidence that low cycle fatigue of PVM passive tissue is a possible mechanism of its proximal failure. This has implications for finding new ways to better prevent PVM injury in the future.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 10