Workshop Overview: Throughout a woman's lifespan, numerous factors intricately influence the functionality of the pelvic floor. Genetics, nutrition, hormones, behavioral patterns, and environmental elements interplay and collectively contribute to the pathophysiology of pelvic floor disorders (PFDs). Crucial life milestones, particularly childbirth and menopause, intersect with these influential factors, potentially triggering the onset and progression of PFDs. The chronic nature of these disorders significantly impacts the quality of life for women in their later stages of life and demands effective healthcare. Nevertheless, the multifaceted nature of the pathogenesis poses considerable challenges to prevention and treatment efforts. To date, no measures have succeeded in fully restoring pelvic function to its normative state. This underscores a critical need of gaining comprehensive understanding of the process from broader perspectives to capture holistic information for effective prevention and targeted treatments. Systems biology, emerging as a powerful tool in the current era of ‘big data’ and ‘-omics’ technologies, presents unprecedented opportunities for surgeons and scientists in this field to comprehensively understand pelvic floor disorders. By integrating evidence from biology across multiple scales, along with insights from engineering and computation, this approach has the potential to catalyze the development of effective strategies for both PDFs prevention and treatment. This workshop will highlight research that goes beyond disciplinary boundaries, with a particular emphasis on broadening our knowledge of various conditions relevant to the etiology, prevention, and treatment of PDFs.
Workshop Faculty: Marsha K. Guess, MD, MS – The University of Colorado School of Med
Workshop Faculty: Helen Lu, PhD – Columbia University
Q&A Moderator: Rui Liang, MD (she/her/hers) – Ohio State University
Workshop Faculty: Linda Burkett, MD MSc (she/her/hers) – Virginia Commonwealth University
Workshop Faculty: Bertha Chen, MD, URPS – Stanford University School of Medicine
Moderator: Lindsey A. Burnett, PhD MD – UC San Diego
Moderator: Michael D. Pezzillo, MD – Henry Ford Health System
Workshop Faculty: Bianca Peña, B.S. (she/her/hers) – University of California San Diego
Moderator: Lindsey A. Burnett, PhD MD – UC San Diego
Moderator: Michael D. Pezzillo, MD – Henry Ford Health System
Workshop Faculty: Sema S. Baghaki (she/her/hers) – Istanbul University of Health Sciences
Moderator: Lindsey A. Burnett, PhD MD – UC San Diego
Moderator: Michael D. Pezzillo, MD – Henry Ford Health System
Workshop Faculty: Kathleen A. Connell, MD (she/her/hers) – University of Colorado School of Medicine/Anschutz Medical Center
Workshop Faculty: Lindsey A. Burnett, PhD MD – UC San Diego
Workshop Faculty: Rui Liang, MD (she/her/hers) – Ohio State University
Q&A Moderator: Amanda M. Artsen, MD – University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Q&A Moderator: Robert S. Kelley, DO, MBA (he/him/his) – Emory University School of Medicine