The purpose of this work is to illustrate US and MR imaging modalities, useful in evaluation of pelvic floor dysfunctions in elderly patients and to outline the best imaging modalities for every kind of dysfunction.

EPIDEMIOLOGY Functional pathology of the pelvic floor, causing different symptoms such as urinary incontinence, uterine or vesical prolapse, or fecal incontinency, affects a high number of women, ranging from 23.7 to 38% in the USA, with a peak of more than 60% in elderly subjects. Age It has been reported (Goldstein) that urinary incontinence in patients from 61 to 65 years has a 22% higher prevalence compared to women aged 50 or less. This difference increases up to 67% in women over 70 years. In...

Several techniques are available for evaluation of the prolapse of the pelvic floor: FLUOROSCOPY It does not allow for evaluation of soft tissues and a concurrent evaluation of all three compartments is practically impossible. CYSTOURETHROGRAPHY It is employed to assess urinary incontinence, but its accuracy is low (50-60%). DEFECOGRAPHY It allows to evaluate the initial level of the pelvic floor and the degree of descent during evacuation. DYNAMIC CYSTOCOLPOPROCTOGRAPHY (fig.2) This imaging test allows for a concurrent performance of defecography and cystocolpourethrography, evaluating the rectal...

The correct diagnosis of pelvic floor dysfunctions is often very hard, both clinically and by mean of imaging and so this kind of disorders can be unrecognised and not properly treated; because of they bring many troubles to the women, such as urinary incontinence or retention, pain, dyspareunia, change in bowel habits, their diagnosis and proper treatment is of primary importance for womens’ psychophysical and social wellness.

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