Avaliação da distensibilidade perineal em mulheres multíparas e sua correlação com a força dos músculos do assoalho pélvico

Abstract

Introduction: The current literature does not present ideal values for pelvic floor distensibility of pregnant women, especially in multiparous women. Such values are of great importance during the preparation for labor, especially when related to studies on the strength of these muscles. Objective: The present study aims to verify the perineal distensibility of multiparous pregnant women and its correlation with pelvic floor muscle strength. Methods: An observational, cross-sectional study conducted at the facilities of the Pelvic Kinesio-Functional Performance and Women's Health Laboratory of the Federal University of Uberlândia, from June 2017 to November 2018. Twenty-eight multiparous pregnant women with gestational age between 33 and 34 weeks were evaluated. . For the evaluation of perineal distensibility, the Epi-No® vaginal trainer was used, and for the evaluation of the pelvic floor muscle contraction capacity, the digital palpation was classified according to the Oxford Modified Scale, with zero variation. at five. The volunteers underwent pelvic floor muscle contraction pressure assessment using the Peritron device (Cardio Design Pty Ltd, Oakleigh, Victoria, Australia). Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS Statistics 17.0 software. Data normality was verified by the Shapiro-Wilk test. Results: No statistically significant correlations were observed between perineal distensibility and maximal voluntary contraction measured by peak (p = 0.145, r = -0.294) or mean (p = 0.223, r = -0.247) contraction pressure. The contraction capacity classified by the Modified Oxford Scale on vaginal palpation was: 9 participants (32.1%) had strength 2, 12 (42.8%) strength 3, 4 (14.3%) strength 4 and 1 (3 , 5%) strength 5. Conclusion: Considering the characteristics of the studied muscle group, the present study found a negative correlation between the perineal distensibility of multiparous pregnant women and the strength of the pelvic floor muscles.