Pelvic Organ Prolapse

1 of 4 normal deliveries in women under 35 years old and 1 of 2 women over 35 years have the risk of Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP). What is POP and how it can happen? Let’s identify the causes.

Prolapse is a condition where the vaginal wall with the other pelvic organs is getting downward, into or out of the vagina. This situation generally occurs at the birth of first pregnancy. Pelvic organ prolapse occurs because the pelvic organs are not strong enough to handle the weight of pregnancy. Among the causes, it could be due to the size of the baby who is too big or it is because of too long straining process at the time of delivery, in addition to several other factors.

Women who have prolapse at the first childbirth are recommended for not doing normal deliveries in the following pregnancies. Although it often has no impact regarding to mortality, but the defects that continuously generated can degrade the quality of life for women, if it’s not prevented or handled accurately and quickly.

Checks after 40 Days

The presence or absence of prolapse however cannot be recognized immediately after pregnancy. The perfect time to get it checked is 40 days after delivery. Inspection is done by identifying the presence or absence of downwards elevator ani. Usually the doctor will perform a physical examination or one involving ultrasound too.

Currently, ultrasound is no longer just to check the presence or absence of congenital abnormalities in infants; ultrasound can also check the presence or absence of abnormalities in the mother. Prompt examination after 40 days of delivery, for if less than that period, the risk of error rate is so high that it possibly becomes useless.

Excessive Weight

Being overweight does not only affect the appearance but also can higher the risk of postpartum prolapse and various other pregnancy complications. One immediate impact is to cause the baby’s size to be excessively big. As a result, it adds the heavy burden of a part of the pelvic floor.

Generally, in women who have a normal body mass index (BMI) before pregnancy, weight gain in normal pregnancy occurs between 12-14 kg. More than that, the number will give the risk of prolapse and other pregnancy complications. Therefore, keep monitoring the weight gain during pregnancy.

Too Many Numbers of Maternity

Labor which is too often is not very good for the state of female pelvic floor. Too often in giving birth can result in the weakening of the muscles and advocating joints of woman’s reproductive organs.

Too Long Periods of Pushing

When the delivery takes place and the opening is complete and the baby’s head is already in the pelvic floor, mother will spontaneously be pushing herself or usually called passive straining. Passive straining usually lasts for one hour in which the tissues of the body will regulate the release of an infant. In this situation the forced straining does not last too long. The maximum permissible straining is 30-45 minutes since if the organs are kept being suppressed, it may lead to damage.

Other Causes

Prolapse can also occur due to some other cause such as the laceration occurrence of perinea stage 3 or 4 at the time of delivery, induction of labor, birth trauma pervaginum and labor actions. The reason can also occur by the factors of age, menopause, genetics, race and smoking.