African Health OER Network: Episiotomy & Repair - Adaptation

An episiotomy is a surgical incision through the perineum made to enlarge the vagina and assist childbirth. The incision can be midline or at an angle from the posterior end of the vulva, is performed under local anaesthetic (pudendal anesthesia) and is sutured closed after delivery. It is one of the most common medical procedures performed on women, and although its routine use in childbirth has steadily declined in recent decades.
 

Authors: Balkachew Nigatu, Richard Adanu, Cary Engleberg

Institutions: St. Paul Hospital Millennium Medical College, University of Ghana, University of Michigan

Adaptation of: Episiotomy & Repair, University of Ghana and University of Michigan. This module contains the same surgical video and many of the same self-assessment questions as the original version. The adaptation is narrated by an Ethiopian physician with additional questions for his students in Addis Ababa, noting the similarities and differences in how the procedure is performed in Ghana. 

Viewer discretion is advised: The educational material contained herein may contain medical images that non-professional viewers may find disturbing.