{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,29]],"date-time":"2026-10-29T11:49:03Z","timestamp":1793274543573,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"Sultan Qaboos University","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,22]],"date-time":"2025-10-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1761091200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Objectives: This study aimed to compare pelvic floor muscle strength (PFMS) in women who had vaginal delivery with episiotomy and those who underwent planned caesarean section 1\u20133 years postpartum. Methods: This retrospective cohort included 208 women from Taleghani Hospital, Arak, Iran, recruited by purposive sampling between May and August 2022. Participants were allocated to two groups: 104 with vaginal delivery and episiotomy and 104 with planned caesarean section. Data were collected using a sociodemographic questionnaire and a perineometer to assess PFMS. Statistical analyses used the independent-samples t test and multiple linear regression. Results: The mean (\u00b1 standard deviation) PFMS was 28.6 \u00b1 7.9 in the vaginal delivery group and 29.1 \u00b1 7.1 in the caesarean section group (perineometer scale: 2\u2013124 units). No significant between-group difference was observed (mean difference =-0.55; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -2.6 to 1.5; P = 0.595). Conclusion: Mode of childbirth\u2014vaginal delivery with episiotomy or planned caesarean section\u2014did not significantly influence PFMS 1\u20133 years postpartum. Caesarean section did not demonstrate a protective effect on PFMS. These findings suggest that concerns about long-term PFMS should not be a primary factor when considering caesarean section over vaginal delivery.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.18295\/2075-0528.2924","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,24]],"date-time":"2025-10-24T00:38:15Z","timestamp":1761266295000},"page":"946-952","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Comparison of Pelvic Floor Muscle Strength in Women With Vaginal Delivery and Caesarean Section After 1\u20133 Years: &lt;em&gt;A Retrospective Cohort Study&lt;\/em&gt;"],"prefix":"10.18295","volume":"25","author":[{"given":"Zahra","family":"Sharifi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Student Research Committee, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Farzaneh","family":"Pazandeh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Health Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giti","family":"Ozgoli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Midwifery and Reproductive Health Research Center, Department of Midwifery and Reproductive Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Marzieh","family":"Bagherinia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Family Health and Population Growth Research Center, Health Policy and Promotion Research Institute, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"7681","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,22]]},"container-title":["Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,29]],"date-time":"2026-10-29T11:15:48Z","timestamp":1793272548000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/mjournal.squ.edu.om\/home\/vol25\/iss1\/128"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,22]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"1","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,22]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.18295\/2075-0528.2924","relation":{},"ISSN":["2075-0528"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2075-0528","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,22]]}}}