Validity of Ultrasound in Women Having Pelvic Floor Muscle Training

Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is defined by involuntary loss of urine. According to the literature, its prevalence ranges from 30 to 60%. The first-line treatment of SUI is pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT). The assessment of pelvic floor muscle (PFM) contraction is essentially clinical, based on the modified OXFORD system associated with symptom questionnaires. Ultrasound is more widely used in case of SUI but has never been evaluated before and after PFMT.

The main objective of this study will be to carry out a validation study of ultrasound measurements in women with predominant SUI (urethral mobility, movement of the ano-rectal angle, elastography): Inter/intra-observer reproducibility; variability versus measurement by correlation with clinical examination (modified Oxford scale); sensitivity to change before/after PFMT Secondary objectives will be to show a correlation between the different ultrasound measurements and the clinical symptoms assessed by validated questionnaires : International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Short Form (ICIQ-SF) and Contilife. A quantitative pulseal elastography analysis by Ultra-fast shear wave elastography (Supersonic Imagine) will also be performed before and after PFMT, looking for changes after PFMT. We Patient satisfaction after PFMT will also be assessed using the validated "Patient Global Impression of Improvement" questionnaire (PGI-I) Materials and Methods: This is a single-center prospective study involving patients in PFMT for predominant SUI. Patients will have a 10-week PFMT protocol. An evaluation will be conducted at the beginning and end of the program. This will include an assessment of symptoms using validated questionnaires (ICIQ-SF, CONTILIFE), a clinical examination (modified Oxford scale), as well as transperineal ultrasound measurements of urethral mobility (Bladder Neck Desent, BND measured in centimeters), movement of ano-rectal angle and quantitative elastography measurements (Ultra-fast shear wave, elasticity E expressed in kiloP).