Intravaginal pressure Assessed by the Kegel perineometer

Abstract

A first attempt was made to provide norms for intravaginal pressure in normal women measured by the Kegel perineometer. Data obtained from 78 white females and 64 black females indicate that resting pressure approximates 5 mm Hg and pressure with appropriate pelvic musculature contracted reaches an average of 15 mm Hg. The difference between resting and contracted pressures is unrelated to the former. There is a moderate negative correlation between number of vaginal births and contracted pressure in the white sample.

The vaginal pressure profile

“…Kegel [1951] used the perineometer to improve the strength of the pelvic £oor muscle (biofeedback training) for the treatment of urinary incontinence in women. Logan [1975] and Levitt et al [1979] made attempts to develop normative data for the vaginal pressures using a perineometer, however, the vaginal pressures they recorded were much lower than reported by Kegel. Even though Logan and Levitt used perineometers to measure vaginal pressure, the material of the pneumatic resistance chamber they used was di¡erent from the one used by Kegel.…”

Reliability of pelvic floor muscle strength assessment using different test positions and tools

“…It may be that this measure is inherently problematic due to a variety of potential sources of error, which may in£uence the resting pressure more in upright than recumbent positions. Only one other study [Levitt et al, 1979] considered reliability of resting pressure, but a di¡erent perineometer was utilized. However, details of methodology and analysis were scant, making comparison with the results of the present study di⁄cult.…”

Effects of Age, Parity, and Adherence on Pelvic Muscle Response to Exercise

“…The intent of much of the past research in this area was to ascertain whether hypertrophy of the muscles, attained through a program of exercise, would affect incontinence, postpartum recovery, or sexual function. Factors reported to influence pelvic muscle function include parity (Levitt, Konovsky, Freese, & Thompson, 1979) and genetics (Gosling, Dixon, Critchley, & Thompson, 1981). Urinary incontinence is associated with increasing age (Herzog & Fultz, 1990), and a relationship between age and the efficacy of pelvic muscle exercise for stress urinary incontinence also has been shown (Henderson & Taylor, 1987).…”