Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Vulvovaginal Symptoms Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of this study were to perform a cross-cultural adaptation of the Vulvovaginal Symptoms Questionnaire (VSQ) into Brazilian Portuguese (VSQ-Br) and evaluate its measurement properties (structural validity, construct validity, internal consistency, and reliability). METHODS: Cross-cultural adaptation was conducted through the translation, synthesis, and back-translation of the VSQ-Br. Subsequently, 314 women completed the Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire, Pelvic Floor Disorders Inventory, Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey, and VSQ-Br. Seven to 10 days later, participants completed the VSQ-Br for the second time. Data were submitted for confirmatory factor analysis. Cronbach α was used to verify internal consistency, and construct validity was assessed using Pearson correlation coefficient ( r ). Reliability was calculated using the intraclass correlation coefficient. RESULTS: Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the questions were grouped into four domains (symptoms, emotions, life impact, and sexual impact). The model showed good fit (>0.95). The Cronbach α in this study was 0.85, reflecting adequate internal consistency. Adequate reliability was confirmed, with an intraclass correlation coefficient total score of 0.80. The VSQ-Br had a weak correlation with the pelvic domain of the Pelvic Floor Disorders Inventory, the pelvic organ prolapse domain of the Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire, and pain, vitality, and the social aspect domains of the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey. CONCLUSIONS: The VSQ-Br was validated and had acceptable measurement properties for assessing vulvovaginal symptoms in Brazilian women.

Sexual function of transgender women after gender affirming surgery: A mini review.

A transgender person has a gender identity opposite to the sex assigned at birth. Transgender individuals may have altered sexual function (SF) due to psychosocial factors related to body image distortion, shame, and dissatisfaction with genital appearance, and these conditions can increase the risk of sexual dysfunction. This study aimed to characterize the SF of trans-women after gender affirming surgery (GAS). We reviewed the Pubmed database for studies published between January 2008 and December 2021. 17 studies were included, four were cross-sectional studies, one prospective study, four prospective cohort studies, five retrospective studies. The instruments used to evaluate the SF were female sexual function index, semistructured questionnaires, patients' opinion, Sexual Desire Inventory, Maudsley Marital Questionnaire-S, WHOQOL-100. The results of our review indicate there is weak evidence that GAS improves the SF of trans-women. We thus recommend that future studies use questionnaires that are validated for the assessment of the SF of trans-women to better determine the impact of genital surgery in this population.

Mobile health technologies for the monitoring of menstrual cycle: A systematic review of online stores in Brazil.

AIM: To perform a systematic review of available mHealth apps for menstrual cycle monitoring in Brazil. METHODS: A search for menstrual cycle mHealth apps from the Google Play Store and AppStore in Brazil was performed by two independent reviewers on October 2020, and the quality of eligible mHealth apps was assessed using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS). RESULTS: Our review identified 2400 potentially relevant mHealth apps, of which 56 were eligible for inclusion. The majority of the apps offered tools to track menstruation symptoms (63%) and educational content for users (32%). The mean ( ±SD) MARS app quality score for the 28 evaluated apps in Android was 3.5 ± 0.6 on a 0-5 scale. For the 28 evaluated apps in iOS, the mean app quality score was 3.8 ± 0.4. Most of the included apps, for both systems, scored average for credibility, user interface, and engagement. CONCLUSION: The majority of available tools in Brazil are of moderate quality and limited functionality for menstrual cycle monitoring. This study highlights the top three mHealth apps available on each online store for individuals seeking menstrual cycle monitoring options.

Intravaginal electrical stimulation increases voluntarily pelvic floor muscle contractions in women who are unable to voluntarily contract their pelvic floor muscles: a randomised trial.

QUESTION: In women who are unable to contract their pelvic floor muscles voluntarily, what is the effect of an intravaginal electrical stimulation regimen on their ability to contract the pelvic floor muscles and on self-reported urinary incontinence? DESIGN: Randomised controlled trial with concealed allocation, blinded assessors and intention-to-treat analysis. PARTICIPANTS: Sixty-four women with pelvic floor muscle function assessed by bi-digital palpation to be grade 0 or 1 on the Modified Oxford Scale. INTERVENTION: For 8 weeks, participants randomised to the experimental group received weekly 20-minute sessions of intravaginal electrical stimulation with instructions to attempt pelvic floor muscle contractions during the bursts of electrical stimulation in the final 10 minutes of each session. The control group received no intervention. OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was ability to voluntarily contract the pelvic floor muscles, evaluated through vaginal palpation using the Modified Oxford Scale. Secondary outcomes were prevalence and severity of urinary incontinence symptoms assessed by the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire on Urinary Incontinence-Short Form (ICIQ-UI-SF) score from 0 to 21. RESULTS: Sixty-one participants provided outcome data. After the intervention, the ability to contract the pelvic floor muscles was acquired by 36% of the experimental group and 12% of the control group (absolute risk difference 0.24, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.43). The experimental group also improved by a mean of 2 points more than the control group on the ICIQ-UI-SF score (95% CI 0.02 to 3.97). CONCLUSION: In women who are unable to contract their pelvic floor muscles voluntarily, 8 weeks of intravaginal electrical stimulation with voluntary contraction attempts improved their ability to contract their pelvic floor muscles and reduced the overall severity and impact of urinary incontinence on quality of life. Although the main estimates of these effects indicate that the effects are large enough to be worthwhile, the precision of these estimates was low, so it is not possible to confirm whether the effects are trivial or worthwhile. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT03319095.

Women report sustained benefits from attending group-based education about pelvic floor muscles: a longitudinal qualitative study.

QUESTION: Among women who have participated in group-based education about the pelvic floor, what are their perceptions of the program and the group format? DESIGN: Exploratory longitudinal qualitative study. PARTICIPANTS: Community-dwelling women aged ≥ 18 years who participated in three or four sessions of pelvic floor education in a group format at a university clinic. DATA EXTRACTION AND ANALYSIS: Semi-structured group or individual interviews were conducted at three time points: 1 week, 3 months and ≥ 5 months after the education activity. Data were inductively content analysed and independently coded, with iterative theme development. RESULTS: Women considered the content and delivery appropriate and useful. New knowledge was assimilated and shared with others, and many tried to adopt pelvic floor muscle training in daily life. The women felt that the education sessions might benefit other women, with and without pelvic floor dysfunction symptoms, and that such education would ideally be more widely available. A perception of the value of the education persisted over time, even though maintenance of some health-promoting behaviours, such as pelvic floor muscle training, decreased. CONCLUSION: The pelvic floor group education sessions appeared to fulfil the purpose of increasing knowledge about pelvic floor (dys)function and applying this in daily life. Overall, the participants, who had completed three or four of the four sessions, found the program to be useful. A unique feature of this study was longitudinal data collection and it seemed that the perception of value persisted over time.

Pelvic Floor Muscle Training Effect in Sexual Function in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of sexual dysfunction is high in postmenopausal women and pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) could improve sexual function during this period. AIM: To assess the effect of a PFMT protocol on sexual function in postmenopausal women and to investigate the effect of this protocol on pelvic floor muscle function. METHODS: This is an assessor blinded randomized controlled trial including 77 postmenopausal women. The study was registered in ReBEC Trial: RBR-3s3ff7. The intervention group (n = 40) received an intensive supervised PFMT protocol during 12 weeks and the control group (n = 37) received no intervention. OUTCOMES: The primary outcome of the study was assessed by the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) questionnaire and the secondary outcome was the evaluation of pelvic floor muscle function performed by digital palpation using the modified Oxford scale at baseline and after 12 weeks. RESULTS: No difference between groups was found in the FSFI domains and total score at baseline and in the second evaluation after 12 weeks. However, after 12 weeks, a higher percentage of women without sexual dysfunction was found in the intervention group (95% CI = 27.97-72.03) when compared to the control group (95% CI = 7.13-92.87). No difference was found between groups in relation to the pelvic floor muscle function at the baseline (P = .2) and after 12 weeks (P = .06). CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: PFMT is a conservative intervention that can lead women to have less sexual dysfunction. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: The protocol provided a reduced number of women with sexual dysfunction, the strength of this research is the study design and the limitation is to have used only one tool to assess sexual function although it is a validated questionnaire. CONCLUSION: PFMT decreases sexual dysfunction in postmenopausal women. MM Franco, CC Pena, LM de Freitas, et al. Pelvic Floor Muscle Training Effect in Sexual Function in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial. J Sex Med 2021;18:1236-1244.

Pelvic floor muscles after prostate radiation therapy: morpho-functional assessment by magnetic resonance imaging, surface electromyography and digital anal palpation

ABSTRACT Aim: To evaluate the radiotherapy (RT) effect in the pelvic floor muscles (PFM) function in men with prostate cancer (PC). Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study included three groups of patients with PC and RT indication: 1) Pre-RT group: evaluated before the beginning of RT; 2) Acute group: evaluated between six months and one year after RT; 3) Late Group: evaluated between two and a half years and four years post-RT. PFM assessment was divided into: a) functional assessment through the digital anal palpation (Modified Oxford Scale) and surface electromyography (sEMG) with anal probe; b) anatomical assessment by pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with thickness measurements of levator ani muscle and pelvic specific parameters at rest and under Valsalva maneuver. We used Student t test, considering as significant p <0.05. Results: Thirty-three men were assessed: Pre-RT (n=12); Acute (n=10) and Late (n=11) groups. PFM functional assessment showed Late group with lower electromyographic activity, especially in the sustained contractions when compared to the Pre-RT (p=0.003) and Acute groups (p=0.006). There was no significant difference between groups in MRI. Conclusion: PFM functional assessment showed a decrease in sEMG activity in the Late group post-RT. Most of the sample (72.7%) did not know how to actively contract the PFM or had a weak voluntary contraction when assessed by digital anal palpation. Also, these patients presented higher prevalence of pelvic complaints. No changes were observed in the morpho-functional parameters evaluated by MRI, except the measurement of the membranous urethra length when comparing Pre-RT Group and Acute and Late Groups.

Are visual inspection and digital palpation reliable methods to assess ability to perform a pelvic floor muscle contraction? An intra-rater study.

AIMS: To investigate the intrarater reliability of visual inspection and digital palpation to classify women's ability to perform a voluntary pelvic floor muscle (PFM) contraction and the association between the two methods. METHODS: This was a test-retest clinical study including 44 women. The ability to perform a PFM voluntary contraction was evaluated two times in all participants using visual inspection and digital palpation. All analyzed participants were assessed with a 7-day interval between the two assessments and by the same examiner. Kappa's agreement coefficient was used to estimate the intrarater reliability, and Fisher's exact test was used to analyze association between the two methods. RESULTS: This study found a substantial intrarater reliability of visual inspection (k = 0.73; p < .001) and digital palpation (k = 0.74; p < .001). A significant association between visual inspection and digital palpation was found at both time points (p < .001). CONCLUSION: Both visual inspection and digital palpation have substantial intrarater reliability and visual inspection can be recommended when vaginal palpation is not tolerated.

Mobile health technologies for the management of urinary incontinence: A systematic review of online stores in Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Urinary incontinence (UI) is a serious condition for which often times insufficient non-surgical treatment options are provided or sought. Mobile health (mHealth) applications (apps) offer potential to assist with the self-management of UI. OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic review of available mHealth apps for UI in Brazil. METHODS: A search for UI mHealth apps from the Google Play Store and AppStore in Brazil was performed by two independent reviewers on June 4 2020, and the quality of eligible mHealth apps was assessed using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS). RESULTS: Of the 1111 mHealth apps found, 12 were eligible for inclusion. Four offered exclusively exercise programs, six offered exercise and educational content, and two offered tools to track patient-reported symptoms. The included apps scored poorly on the MARS quality scale, with a mean ±â€¯standard deviation score of 2.7 ±â€¯0.6 on a 0-5 scale. Most apps scored poorly based on credibility, user interface and experience, and engagement. CONCLUSION: Although there is growing interest in the development of mHealth technologies to support patients with UI, currently available tools in Brazil are of poor quality and limited functionality. Effective collaboration between industry and research is needed to develop new user-centered mHealth apps that can empower patients with UI.

A guide to physiotherapy in urogynecology for patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

INTRODUCTION AND AIM: Physiotherapy in urogynecology faces challenges to safely continuing its work, considering the adoption of social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some guidelines have already been published for urogynecology; however, no specific documents have been produced on physiotherapy in urogynecology. This article aimed to offer guidance regarding physiotherapy in urogynecology during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A group of experts in physiotherapy in women's health performed a literature search in the Pubmed, PEDro, Web of Science and Embase databases and proposed a clinical guideline for physiotherapy management of urogynecological disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic. This document was reviewed by other physiotherapists and a multidisciplinary panel, which analyzed the suggested topics and reached consensus. The recommendations were grouped according to their similarities and allocated into categories. RESULTS: Four categories of recommendations (ethics and regulation issues, assessment of pelvic floor muscle function and dysfunction, health education and return to in-person care) were proposed. Telephysiotherapy and situations that need in-person care were also discussed. Regionalization is another topic that was considered. CONCLUSION: This study provides some guidance for continuity of the physiotherapist's work in urogynecology during the COVID-19 pandemic, considering the World Health Organization recommendations and the epidemiological public health situation of each region. Telephysiotherapy can also be used to provide continuity of the care in this area during the COVID-19 pandemic, opening new perspectives for physiotherapy in urogynecology.

Pelvic floor muscles after prostate radiation therapy: morpho-functional assessment by magnetic resonance imaging, surface electromyography and digital anal palpation.

AIM: To evaluate the radiotherapy (RT) effect in the pelvic floor muscles (PFM) function in men with prostate cancer (PC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study included three groups of patients with PC and RT indication: 1) Pre-RT group: evaluated before the beginning of RT; 2) Acute group: evaluated between six months and one year after RT; 3) Late Group: evaluated between two and a half years and four years post-RT. PFM assessment was divided into: a) functional assessment through the digital anal palpation (Modified Oxford Scale) and surface electromyography (sEMG) with anal probe; b) anatomical assessment by pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with thickness measurements of levator ani muscle and pelvic specific parameters at rest and under Valsalva maneuver. We used Student t test, considering as significant p <0.05. RESULTS: Thirty-three men were assessed: Pre-RT (n=12); Acute (n=10) and Late (n=11) groups. PFM functional assessment showed Late group with lower electromyographic activity, especially in the sustained contractions when compared to the Pre-RT (p=0.003) and Acute groups (p=0.006). There was no significant difference between groups in MRI. CONCLUSION: PFM functional assessment showed a decrease in sEMG activity in the Late group post-RT. Most of the sample (72.7%) did not know how to actively contract the PFM or had a weak voluntary contraction when assessed by digital anal palpation. Also, these patients presented higher prevalence of pelvic complaints. No changes were observed in the morpho-functional parameters evaluated by MRI, except the measurement of the membranous urethra length when comparing Pre-RT Group and Acute and Late Groups.

Recommendations for Physiotherapy in Breast and Gynecological Cancer during COVID-19 Pandemic: Literature Review / Recomendações para Fisioterapia em Oncologia Mamária e Ginecológica durante a Pandemia de COVID-19: Revisão da Literatura / Recomendaciones de Fisioterapia en Oncología Mamaria y Ginecológica durante la Pandemia Covid-19: Revisión de Literatura

Introduction: Considering COVID-19 pandemic, physiotherapeutic care for breast and gynecological cancer has the challenge of continuing or beginning the treatment, preventing or treating complications. Objective: To offer guidance about physiotherapy for breast and gynecological cancer during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: Descriptive study produced after a public consultation about the theme and based on literature review and opinions of a group of experts. To classify the strength of the recommendations of the outcomes included, the GRADE system was used. Results: 82 Brazilian physiotherapists responded the online survey. Most of the professionals (36.6%) reported they needed information about the use of personal protective equipment and its hygiene, 18.3%, control and prevention of lymphedema, bandaging and skin care and 17.1%, pelvic floor dysfunction. The analysis of the public consultation, literature review and expert's consensus resulted in recommendations related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic over the care to women undergoing breast or gynecological cancer treatment and on physiotherapy follow-up; on telephysiotherapy follow-up of the most prevalent complications; on women in palliative care and safety after resuming in-person consultation. Aspects of the decision making in relation to the format of the sessions were discussed and the criteria to return to in-person routine. Conclusion: This manuscript recommends the continuation of the physiotherapy services during and after the COVID-19 pandemic highlighting the educative and self-applied components of the sessions, prioritizing a physical activity plan and specific exercises to contribute for better quality of life of the women.

Introdução: Considerando a pandemia de Covid-19 e a assistência fisioterapêutica nos cânceres de mama e ginecológico, o desafio tem sido continuar ou iniciar a fisioterapia para prevenir ou tratar complicações. Objetivo: Oferecer recomendações voltadas à fisioterapia para os cânceres de mama e ginecológico durante o período de Covid-19. Método: Estudo descritivo produzido após consulta pública sobre o tema, baseado na revisão da literatura e nas considerações de grupo de especialistas. Para graduar a força das recomendações para os desfechos incluídos, utilizou-se o sistema GRADE. Resultados: Oitenta e dois fisioterapeutas de diferentes regiões brasileiras responderam à pesquisa, remotamente. A maioria (36,6%) relatou necessidade de informação sobre equipamento de proteção individual e sua higiene; 18,3% sobre controle e prevenção de linfedema, enfaixamento compressivo e cuidados com a pele; e 17,1% sobre disfunção do assoalho pélvico. A análise da consulta pública, revisão da literatura e considerações dos especialistas resultaram nas recomendações sobre: impacto da pandemia de Covid-19 no acompanhamento fisioterapêutico das mulheres submetidas ao tratamento oncológico mamário ou ginecológico; acompanhamento das complicações mais prevalentes por meio da telefisioterapia; atenção às mulheres em cuidados paliativos; e segurança na assistência após retorno presencial. Aspectos da tomada de decisão em relação ao formato das sessões e critérios de retorno à rotina presencial foram discutidos. Conclusão: Este manuscrito recomenda a continuidade da fisioterapia durante e após a pandemia de Covid-19, destacando componentes educativos e de autoaplicação, priorizando um plano de atividade física e exercícios específicos para contribuir para melhor qualidade de vida das mulheres.

Introducción: Considerando la pandemia de Covid-19 y la asistencia de fisioterapia en cáncer de mama y ginecológico, el desafío ha sido continuar o iniciar la fisioterapia para prevenir o tratar complicaciones. Objetivo: Ofrecer recomendaciones de fisioterapia para el cáncer de mama y ginecológico durante la pandemia. Método: Estudio descriptivo elaborado tras una consulta pública sobre el tema, basado en una revisión de la literatura y consideraciones de expertos. Para calificar la fuerza de las recomendaciones se utilizó el sistema GRADE. Resultados: Ochenta y dos fisioterapeutas brasileños respondieron a la encuesta; 36,6% refirió la necesidad de información sobre equipos de protección personal e higiene; 18,3% en el control y prevención del linfedema, vendajes compresivos y cuidado de la piel; 17,1% en disfunción del suelo pélvico. El análisis de la consulta pública, la revisión de la literatura y las consideraciones de los expertos dieron como resultado las recomendaciones sobre: impacto de la pandemia Covid-19 en el seguimiento fisioterapéutico de mujeres sometidas a tratamiento por cáncer de mama y ginecológico; seguimiento de las complicaciones más prevalentes mediante teleterapia; atención a mujeres en cuidados paliativos; y seguridad en la asistencia después del regreso en persona. Se discutieron aspectos de la toma de decisión y sen relación al formato de las sesiones y criterios para volver a la rutina presencial. Conclusión: Este manuscrito presenta algunas recomendaciones para la continuidad de la fisioterapia durante la pandemia, destacando los componentes educativos y de autorrealización de las guías, y priorizando un plan de actividad física y ejercicios específicos para contribuir con mejor calidad de vida.

Pelvic floor parameters in women with gynecological endocrinopathies: a systematic review.

There is no pooled information about pelvic floor parameters (muscle assessment, disorders) of women with gynecologicaL endocrinopathies (eg. polycystic ovary syndrome, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, premature ovarian insufficiency). Given that, a systematic review was performed on the Pubmed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Scielo and PEDro databases regarding the main gynecological endocrinopathies [polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), premature ovarian insufficiency (POI), congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) and hyperprolactinemia (HPL)] since their inception to April 2020. Data quality assessment was made by the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) adapted for cross-sectional studies. A total of 4,272 results were retrieved from all databases. After excluding duplicate results and screening by title and abstract, nine studies were selected for quantitative analysis. Seven studies were performed with women with PCOS and two studies with POI. Women with PCOS presented a higher prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) among obese women, a higher thickness of the levator ani muscle, and higher levels of muscle activity measured by surface electromyograph when compared to the control women. Regarding POI, there was no association with UI, FI, and POP. NOS found that the quality assessment for these selected studies ranged from 5 to 8. We concluded that higher pelvic muscle activity and volume were found in women with PCOS, with further studies needed to confirm this data. Literature was scant about POI, CAH, and HPL.

Pelvic floor parameters in women with gynecological endocrinopathies: a systematic review

SUMMARY There is no pooled information about pelvic floor parameters (muscle assessment, disorders) of women with gynecologicaL endocrinopathies (eg. polycystic ovary syndrome, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, premature ovarian insufficiency). Given that, a systematic review was performed on the Pubmed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Scielo and PEDro databases regarding the main gynecological endocrinopathies [polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), premature ovarian insufficiency (POI), congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) and hyperprolactinemia (HPL)] since their inception to April 2020. Data quality assessment was made by the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) adapted for cross-sectional studies. A total of 4,272 results were retrieved from all databases. After excluding duplicate results and screening by title and abstract, nine studies were selected for quantitative analysis. Seven studies were performed with women with PCOS and two studies with POI. Women with PCOS presented a higher prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) among obese women, a higher thickness of the levator ani muscle, and higher levels of muscle activity measured by surface electromyograph when compared to the control women. Regarding POI, there was no association with UI, FI, and POP. NOS found that the quality assessment for these selected studies ranged from 5 to 8. We concluded that higher pelvic muscle activity and volume were found in women with PCOS, with further studies needed to confirm this data. Literature was scant about POI, CAH, and HPL.

RESUMO Existe informação não organizada sobre a avaliação do assoalho pélvico de mulheres com endocrinopatias ginecológicas (ex. síndrome dos ovários policísticos - SOP, hiperplasia adrenal congênita - HAC, insuficiência ovariana prematura - IOP). Dessa forma, objetivamos realizar uma revisão sistemática foi realizada nas bases Pubmed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Scielo e PEDro sobre as endocrinopatias ginecológicas (SOP, HAC, IOP e hiperprolactinemia (HPL) desde a origem a abril de 2020. A avaliação da qualidade de dados foi real-izada pela escala de Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) adaptada para estudos transversais. De 4,272 resultados encontrados em todas as databases, após exclusão por duplicatas, triando por título e resumos, nove estudos foram selecionados para análise quantitativa. Sete estudos foram realizados para mulheres com SOP e dois estudos com IOP. Em suma, mulheres com SOP apresentados uma alta prevalência de incontinência urinária (IU) em mulheres obesas, alta espessura do músculo elevador do ânus, altos níveis de atividade muscular aferida por eletromiografia de superfície quando comparadas com mulheres do grupo controle. Sobre a IOP, esta não foi associada com IU, IF e POP. A escala NOS evidenciou que a qualidade dos estudos selecionados variou de 5 a 8. Concluímos que uma alta atividade e volume muscular foi encontrada em mulheres com SOP, com estudos posteriores sendo necessários para confirmar estes achados. Literatura foi escassa para IOP, HAC e HPL.

Multiprofessional care promotes of quality of life in pregnant women with preeclampsia: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the quality of life of hospitalized pregnant women with preeclampsia (PE), and compare with a group of healthy pregnant women (HP). METHODS: This was an observational cross-sectional study conducted among 58 pregnant women; 28 of them had preeclampsia and 30 were healthy. The WHOQOL-Bref questionnaire, which was divided into four aspects: physical, psychological, social, and environmental, was applied to each subject. RESULTS: A statistically significant difference was observed regarding maternal age (PE 27.8±6.2 x HG 23.0±6.6, p<0.01) and gestational age (PE 224±28.1 x HG 253.8±43.7, p<0.01) in relation to the clinical and obstetric data. No significant difference was observed among groups in the physical (PE 57.7±18.9 x HG 65.7±16.6, p=0.19), psychological (PE 68.2±12.8 x HG 73.3±13.30, p=0.16), social (PE 72.0±15.8 x HG 71.7±18.7, p=0.78), or environmental (PE 61.1±11.9 x HG 59.3±15.9, p=0.88) aspects of the WHOQOL-Bref. CONCLUSION: There was no difference in quality of life between the groups studied, a result possibly due to the fact that women with PE were hospitalized and received multiprofessional care.

Responsiveness of Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory (PFDI-20) and Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire (PFIQ-7) after pelvic floor muscle training in women with stress and mixed urinary incontinence.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the responsiveness of Brazilian-Portuguese version of Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory-20 (PFDI-20) and Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire-7 (PFIQ-7) after pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) in women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and mixed urinary incontinence (MUI). STUDY DESIGN: This is an observational study with 72 women (51.8 ± 11.9SD years) with SUI (n = 33) and MUI (n = 39). Participants answered PFDI-20 and PFIQ-7 before and after PFMT, which consisted of a 12 weeks protocol supervised by a physiotherapist once a week with 30 min of a duration. Wilcoxon test, effect size (ES) and standardized response mean (SRM) were performed on baseline and after three months. RESULTS: We found a significant reduction in PFDI-20 and PFIQ-7 after PFMT (p < 0.001), except for Pelvic Organ Prolapses Distress Inventory (POPDI-16), Colorectal-Anal Impact Questionnaire (CRAIQ-7) and Pelvic Organ Prolapse Impact Questionnaire (POPIQ-7). The responsiveness of both questionnaires was considered moderate for PFDI-20 (ES = 0.49; SEM = 0.61; p < 0.0001) and PFIQ-7 (ES = 0.51; SEM = 0.52; p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: PFDI-20 and PFIQ-7 Brazilian Portuguese version presented moderate responsiveness in women with SUI and MUI who performed a PFMT.

Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the childbirth experience questionnaire.

BACKGROUND: The Childbirth Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) is a tool designed to assess women's perceptions about labor and delivery. The aim of this study was to perform the cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the CEQ (CEQ-Br). METHODS: The original version of the CEQ was translated into Portuguese, analyzed by a committee of experts, back translated, and finally submitted to pilot-test. Two applications of the CEQ-Br were performed along with the quality of life questionnaire Medical Outcomes Study 36 - Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). The SPSS software was used for statistical analysis, the intraclass correlation coefficient was used to investigate test-retest reliability, the internal consistency was investigated with the Cronbach's Alpha, and the construct validity was investigated via the Spearman correlation test. The level of significance was set at 5%. RESULTS: The study included 308 women with a mean age of 31.1 ± 8.7 years. The internal consistency results for the total CEQ-Br score was considered adequate (0.89), the test-retest showed a substantial result with an ICC of 0.90, and the construct validity was analyzed via the Spearman correlation between all SF-36 dimensions and the total CEQ-B score, the analyses were considered adequate. CONCLUSIONS: The results presented in this CEQ-Br validation study showed that the instrument was reliable in measuring the established psychometric properties and was considered valid. Therefore, the CEQ-Br can be applied to the Brazilian population.