Antepartum tactile imager for minimizing risk of maternal childbirth trauma

Overof women suffer obstetric trauma to one or several components of the pelvic floorwith vaginaperineal bodylevator ani musclesand the anal sphincter complex affected most commonlyBirth injury to these integral structural components of the female pelvic floor leads to pelvic pain and dyspareuniaand serves as the most important and potentially modifiable risk factor for subsequent pelvic floor disordersUnfortunatelythere are currently no preventive strategies beyond elective Cesarean deliverywhich is associated with many untoward consequencesOur central thesis that pelvic tissuesbiomechanical properties in late pregnancy determine the risk of birth injury for a set of specific intrapartum conditionsi efetal head sizeshape size of maternal bony pelvisduration of expulsive effortsThe long term goal of this project to developvalidate and integrate into clinical practice a novel deviceAntepartum Tactile ImagerATIto simultaneously measure biomechanical properties of various pelvic structural components that are impacted during vaginal deliveryand to develop a risk prediction model of maternal birth injury by correlating ATI data with postpartum outcomesUltimatelysuch model will enable individualized patient counseling regarding the mode of delivery and or the need for obstetrical interventions to reduce childbirth traumaPhase I Specific Aims target to design ATIprototype and explore imaging qualityexamination techniqueprobe design and safety in a pilot clinical study of non pregnant and pregnant women Overof women suffer some degree of perineal trauma during a vaginal deliveryCesarean delivery itself is a trauma with immediate and long term consequencesThe long term goal of this project to developvalidate and integrate into clinical practice a novel deviceAntepartum Tactile ImagerATIto simultaneously measure biomechanical properties of various pelvic structural components that are impacted during vaginal deliveryand to develop a risk prediction model of maternal birth injury by correlating ATI data with delivery outcomesUltimatelysuch model will enable individualized patient counseling regarding the mode of delivery and or the need for obstetrical interventions to reduce childbirth trauma