Abstract
Introduction and hypothesis
Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is a common medical condition universally. In addition to physical examination, experts have increasingly turned their attention to ultrasound in diagnosing POP for its low cost and dynamic imaging. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the methods of pelvic floor ultrasound in diagnosing POP, which has been lacking up till now.
Methods
We included original papers comparing the outcome of the Pelvic Organ Prolapse Quantification system and ultrasound, published from 2008 to present in English, using electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, PUBMED). All stages of the review were conducted in parallel by two reviewers.
Results
Fifteen papers were included. We found that current methods have advantages and limitations. The main methods are to measure levator hiatus-related parameters and distances between the lowest point of the pelvic organs and reference lines during Valsalva maneuver, contraction, and at rest.
Conclusions
Pelvic floor ultrasound is valuable in diagnosing POP, yet suffers from a weakness in precision compared with physical examination. From the existing research, we found that the differences in baseline data such as weight, height, ethnicity, etc., may affect the cutoffs of the above-mentioned parameters. Further research is required to find one appropriate cutoff for each parameter, even if it is necessary to set group values for every parameter according to varying situations.
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Acknowledgements
Foundation of Sichuan Provincial Science and Technology Program (Grant No. 2019YFH0147), Foundation of Chengdu Municipal Science and Technology Program (Grant No. 2018YF0500195SN) and Foundation of West China Second Hospital Program (Grant No. KX111) are acknowledged.
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The authors acknowledge the following financial support: Foundation of Sichuan Provincial Science and Technology Program (Grant No. 2019YFH0147); Foundation of Chengdu Municipal Science and Technology Program (Grant No. 2018YF0500195SN); Foundation of West China Second Hospital Program (Grant No. KX111).
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Appendices
Appendices
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
Appendix 4: search strategy
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Database: EBM Reviews—Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, May 2019
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Database: Embase, 1974 to 13 June 2019
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Database: Ovid MEDLINE, 1946 to June week 2 2019
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Database: PubMed, 1946 to 14 June 2019
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Appendix 5
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Gao, Y., Zhao, Z., Yang, Y. et al. Diagnostic value of pelvic floor ultrasonography for diagnosis of pelvic organ prolapse: a systematic review. Int Urogynecol J 31, 15–33 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00192-019-04066-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00192-019-04066-w