Recovery of puborectalis muscle after vaginal delivery: an ultrasound study.
Maria K van de WaarsenburgE A VerberneC H van der VaartM I J WithagenPublished in: Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology (2018)
The puborectalis muscle has the ability to recover anatomically from a first vaginal delivery, and recovery occurs mainly during the first 3 weeks after delivery. Stretching of the puborectalis muscle, as reflected by distensibility, persisted 24 weeks after the first vaginal delivery. The data provide a better understanding of the early 'normal' regeneration process and we hypothesize that the first 3 weeks postpartum is the best window in which to start secondary prevention. Copyright © 2017 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.