Validity & Reliability of Vlosum (Het’s Device - to Instantly Test Vaginal Opening) Test the Vaginal Opening

Abstract

Spasmodic pelvic floor muscles can occur due to multiple reasons like stress, anxiety, recurrent urinary tract infection. The pelvic floor dysfunctions due to hypertonus pelvic floor muscles can be Vaginismus, dyspareunia, chronic pelvic pain, urinary symptoms like dysuria, incomplete voiding, lower abdominal pain associated with bladder filling, hypertonic pelvic floor muscles can also lead to issues with constipation, pelvic dyssynergia etc. The prevalence of Vaginismus and dyspareunia is very high. Yet there is no single tool which is designed to assess the pelvic floor relaxation ability. Vlosum is the world’s first device which can test and improve vaginal opening (through relaxation of pelvic floor muscles). The outcome measure taken are FSFI – Female Sexual Function Index, NPRS – Numeric Pain Rating Scale, self-reported question for anxiety about first time penetration and Vlosum. The study duration was of 18 months and 1184 women were evaluated. The participants were divided into 3 groups Group A – Vaginismus, Group B – Dyspareunia and Group C – Anxiety of first-time penetration. The data of all the outcome measure were analyzed. It can be concluded that Vlosum is a reliable and valid tool to test vaginal opening. Keywords: Vaginismus, Dyspareunia, First-time Anxiety, Vlosum