Overview
During your appointment, your healthcare provider will review your symptoms and perform a pelvic exam. During the exam, your provider may ask you to cough so that they can see the full extent of your prolapse when you’re straining and when you’re relaxed. They may examine you while you’re lying down and while you’re standing. Often, a pelvic exam is all it takes to diagnose a prolapse.
Additional tests may include:
- Pelvic floor function tests that allow your provider to see how strong the muscles and ligaments in your pelvis are. This could include performing certain movements and motions or tightening and relaxing your muscles.
- Bladder function tests that allow your provider to look for signs of urinary issues that are common with POP. Tests may include a cystoscopy, a procedure that allows your provider to see inside your bladder and urethra. Your provider may also perform a urodynamics test to see how well your bladder and urethra are storing and releasing pee.
- Imaging procedures that allow your provider to view inside your pelvic cavity. Your provider may order a pelvic floor ultrasound or MRI to determine the extent of your prolapse. Providers typically only use imaging in complex cases.
What are the stages of pelvic organ prolapse?
The Pelvic Organ Prolapse Quantification (POP-Q) system classifies POP based on how far your pelvic organs drop relative to your hymen. Your hymen is a piece of tissue at the exit of your vagina.
The scale ranges from zero to four:
- Stage zero means your organs haven’t shifted out of place at all.
- Stage one means the prolapse is mild. The organ measures at least 1 cm above your hymen.
- Stage two means the prolapse is moderate. The organ is less than 1 cm from your hymen.
- Stage three means the prolapse is severe. The organ is more than 1 cm below your hymen but the prolapse isn’t completely outside your vagina.
- Stage four means you have a complete prolapse. A complete prolapse is the most severe kind. It involves a prolapse bulging completely outside of your vagina.
Pelvic organ prolapse may affect different organs in different ways. For example, you could have a stage three bladder prolapse and a stage one uterine prolapse.
Symptoms
When to see a doctor
Complications
- High blood pressure.
- Diabetes.
- Heart failure.
- Some types of heart valve disease.
Prevention
- Control high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
- Don't smoke or use tobacco.
- Eat a diet that's low in salt and saturated fat.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week unless your health care team says not to.
- Get good sleep. Adults should aim for 7 to 9 hours daily.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Reduce and manage stress.
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