Racial differences in pelvic anatomy by magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To use static and dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to compare dimensions of the bony pelvis and soft tissue structures in a sample of African-American and white women. METHODS: This study used data from 234 participants in the Childbirth and Pelvic Symptoms Imaging Study, a cohort study of 104 primiparous women with an obstetric anal sphincter tear, 94 who delivered vaginally without a recognized anal sphincter tear and 36 who underwent by cesarean delivery without labor. Race was self-reported. At 6-12 months postpartum, rapid acquisition T2-weighted pelvic MRIs were obtained. Bony and soft tissue dimensions were measured and compared between white and African-American participants using analysis of variance, while controlling for delivery type and age. RESULTS: The pelvic inlet was wider among 178 white women than 56 African-American women (10.7±0.7 cm compared with 10.0.+0.7 cm, P