State of the art: an integrated approach to pelvic floor ultrasonography

Surgical management of pelvic floor disorders depends on a comprehensive understanding of the structural integrity and function of the pelvic floor. For visualizing this region, ultrasonography has emerged as a procedure that is relatively easy to perform, cost-effective and widely available. In this review, pelvic floor ultrasonography, including two-dimensional (2D), three-dimensional (3D) and 4D imaging as well as transvaginal, endoanal and transperineal techniques, is discussed from a global and multicompartmental perspective, rather than using a compartmentalized approach. The role of the different sonographic modalities in the major disorders of the pelvic floor-urinary and fecal incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse and obstructed defecation syndrome-is evaluated critically.