Sphincter

Abstract: Background Lacerations of the anal sphincter or injury to sphincter innervation during childbirth are major causes of fecal incontinence, but the incidence and importance of occult sphincter damage during routine vaginal delivery are unknown. We sought to determine the incidence of damage to the anal sphincter and the relation of injury to symptoms, anorectal physiologic function, and the mode of delivery. Methods We studied 202 consecutive women six weeks before delivery, 150 of them six weeks after delivery, and 32 with abnormal findings six months after delivery. Symptoms of anal incontinence and fecal urgency were assessed, and anal endosonography, manometry, perineometry, and measurement of the terminal motor latency of the pudendal nerves were performed. Results Ten of the 79 primiparous women (13 percent) and 11 of the 48 multiparous women (23 percent) who delivered vaginally had anal incontinence or fecal urgency when studied six weeks after delivery. Twenty-eight of the 79 primiparous women (35 p...

Abstract: We evaluated the mechanisms of gastroesophageal reflux in 10 patients with reflux esophagitis and compared the results with findings from 10 controls. The patients had more episodes of reflux (35 +/- 15 in 12 hours, as compared with 9 +/- 8 in the controls) and a lower pressure of the lower esophageal sphincter (13 +/- 8 mm Hg as compared with 29 +/- 9 in the controls) (P less than 0.001). Reflux occurred by three different mechanisms: transient complete relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter, a transient increase in intra-abdominal pressure, or spontaneous free reflux associated with a low resting pressure of the lower esophageal sphincter. In controls 94 per cent of reflux episodes were caused by transient sphincter sphincter relaxation. In the patients 65 per cent of episodes of reflux accompanied transient sphincter relaxation, 17 per cent accompanied a transient increase in intra-abdominal pressure, and 18 per cent occurred as spontaneous free reflux. The predominant reflux mechanism in individual patients varied: some had normal resting sphincter pressure and reflux that occurred primarily during transient sphincter relaxation, whereas others with low resting sphincter pressures had spontaneous free reflux or reflux that occurred during an increase in intra-abdominal pressure.