Word: perineum
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...even come close to conveying the violent spasms that take hold when the body reflexively tries to squeeze a baby through a narrow vaginal opening. The forces involved are such that when the baby's head emerges, it can do so with sufficient pressure to rip the mother's perineum and leave grind marks on pubic bone. In many ways, the act of giving birth resembles a medical emergency - in fact, if no medical intervention of any kind were made, up to 1 in 67 women would die in labor. Fear of birth pain is thus legitimate...
...issue is the operation known as an episiotomy, a small incision made in the perineum just before delivery to prevent tearing. Even as recently as 20 years ago, when I started medical school, doctors were performing episiotomies routinely. Since then, many studies have cast doubt on the value of the operation. But the report in J.A.M.A.--which pooled the results of 26 medical articles (out of nearly 1,000 on the subject)--is the most definitive. The review showed that episiotomies are linked to higher risk of injury, more difficult healing and more pain. The procedure does nothing to prevent...
...there are risks associated with natural childbirth too. During difficult deliveries, in which the mother is pushing for three or more hours, a baby can suffocate or sustain brain damage in the birth canal. Moreover, up to 5% of vaginal deliveries result in severe tearing of the mother's perineum, which can lead to incontinence and an excruciating recovery...
Absolutely, says Joe's physician, Dr. Irwin Goldstein, a professor of urology and gynecology at the Boston University School of Medicine. Since 1997, Goldstein has been warning cyclists that hours of sitting on a bike saddle can create enough pressure on the perineum, the area between the anus and the pubic bone, to permanently damage the artery that supplies blood to the penis. On the basis of a study of several thousand men in a Boston riding club, Goldstein believes that as many as 4% of male cyclists have problems with impotence due to cycling...
...meantime, it won't hurt to check out the new ergonomic seats. Also, make sure your bike fits your torso. Leaning over all the time increases the pressure on your perineum. (Women have perinea too, and some female cyclists have reported genitourinary problems.) Remember to lift yourself off the seat now and again to take the pressure off the perineum. Or try switching to a recumbent bike. Whatever you do, don't dismiss genital numbness. Your body could be trying to tell you something important...