(Poster 95) Body Image in Hispanic vs Non-Hispanic Women Before and After Pelvic Surgery

Objectives: Pelvic floor disorders can have an impact on a woman’s body image, which can affect quality of life, mental health, and sexual function. Improvement of body image after surgical correction of prolapse has been demonstrated in the past. However, these studies have been limited by lack of diversity in their study populations, which consisted of primarily Caucasian, English-speaking patients. The objective of this study was to assess baseline body image scores in Hispanic and non-Hispanic women with pelvic floor disorders and to compare changes in body image scores after pelvic reconstructive surgery in both groups.

Methods: Patients seen at a Urogynecology clinic with planned surgical treatment for prolapse and/or stress urinary incontinence were recruited during their pre-operative visits. Participants completed pre-surgical questionnaires regarding pelvic floor symptoms and body image, including the Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory (PFDI-20), Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire (PFIQ-7), Urinary distress inventory (UDI), Body Image Scale (BIS), and Body Image in Pelvic Organ Prolapse (BIPOP). Questionnaires were completed either in English or Spanish. All questionnaires have been previously validated in English and Spanish with exception of the Spanish version of BIS, which was validated as part of this study (reported separately). Patient demographics and pertinent clinical information was obtained from chart review after enrollment. Postoperatively, participants completed the same questionnaires at 6 weeks and 12 weeks after surgery.

Body image scores calculated from the BIS pre-operatively were compared between Hispanic and non-Hispanic participants using the Mann-Whitney U test. These scores were then compared within and between groups with scores at 6 weeks after surgery using paired t-tests. A mean of paired differences was assessed using Student’s t-test.

Results: A total of 99 women with pelvic floor disorders were included. Of these women, 22 identified as Hispanic, and 77 identified as non-Hispanic. Pre-operatively, patients had an average BIS score of 8.1. This score was found to be significantly higher in non-Hispanic women when compared to Hispanic women (p 0.014). Postoperatively, there was an average improvement in body image reflected by an decreased BIS score to 6.5 (p 0.008). This improvement was not different when compared between Hispanic and non-Hispanic cohorts (p 0.41).

Conclusions: Both Hispanic and non-Hispanic women were found to have high BIS scores pre-operatively, which corresponds to poor body image. Though non-Hispanic women were noted to have significantly higher BIS scores at baseline, both groups were noted to have significant improvement in their body image scores by 6 weeks after a pelvic reconstructive surgery. This study supports previous findings that pelvic floor disorders have a significant impact on a patient’s body image, and highlights the importance of including more diverse populations in future research.