Background: Abdominal stretch marks found during pregnancy may be indicative of poor skin elasticity. One who does not have stretch marks may have better skin elasticity and may be less likely to tear perineal and vaginal tissue during vaginal delivery. This study was conducted to determine whether striae gravidarum could predict lacerations and their severity.
Methods: This prospective observational study included 168 women having vaginal delivery of infants who weighed more than 2,000 g. The absence or presence and degree of lacerations involving the perineum, vagina, labia, and periurethral regions were studied with a step-wise multivariate logistic regression analysis.
Results: Episiotomy was found to prevent spontaneous lacerations. Abdominal stretch marks were found to be statistically significant predictors of lacerations when controlling for episiotomy.
Conclusions: Patients with striae gravidarum are at higher risk for lacerations at the time of vaginal delivery than patients who do not have abdominal stretch marks.