Clinical evaluation of the Hegenberger Retractor for perineal repair: an evaluation of clinicians' experience

Kozlyk, Darya

Darya Kozlyk, postgraduate research student, Institute for Women's Health, University College London, UK. Email:[email protected]

MIDIRS Midwifery Digest 32(3):p 380-385, September 2022.

Introduction

Around 85 per cent of women who have a vaginal birth will sustain some degree of birth-related perineal trauma and, of these, around 70 per cent will need repair using a technique called perineal suturing, usually within an hour of the birth ().

Between 2019-2020 there were 399,509 vaginal deliveries in England, suggesting approximately 237,707 women per year (651 per day) underwent perineal suturing across NHS trusts (). This very common procedure has lifelong consequences for women's physical, sexual and psychological health and, if performed incorrectly or inadequately, carries substantial financial burden to the NHS ().