Maternal Body Mass Index and Anovaginal Distance

The hypothesis was that the anovaginal distance (AVD), defined as the distance between the anal mucosa and the vaginal wall at the middle level of the anal canal, is higher in obese women compared with normal weight women. Measuring the AVD with transperineal ultrasound has been shown to have a high interobserver agreement. This study aimed to establish if there was a difference in AVD measured by transperineal ultrasound between obese and normal weight women in active phase of labor at term pregnancy. The second aim was to present normal values for the AVD in active phase of labor at term pregnancy.