Pelvic floor dysfunctions among people who are LGBTQIA2S+: a scoping review protocol.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this scoping review is to present the current evidence in relation to pelvic floor dysfunctions among people who are LGBTQIA2S+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, 2-spirit, and additional sexual and gender minorities).

INTRODUCTION

A significant proportion of people experience pelvic floor dysfunctions, including urinary and fecal incontinence, chronic pelvic pain, or pelvic organ prolapse. Although these conditions can affect the entire population, studies from various health fields suggest that people who are LGBTQIA2S+ are at greater risk of developing some of these problems. This review will help identify research gaps and provide recommendations for future studies.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Articles investigating any type of pelvic floor dysfunction among people who are LGBTQIA2S+, regardless of study design, will be included.

METHODS

This review will be conducted in accordance with the JBI methodology for scoping reviews. Database searches will include PubMed (NIH), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), the Cochrane Library, PsycINFO (Ovid), Web of Science Core Collection, and Google Scholar. Two reviewers will independently screen titles and abstracts based on the selection criteria, and in cases of discrepancies, a third reviewer will be consulted to reach a consensus. This process will also be followed for the full-text review of selected articles. A data extraction tool was developed by the research team. Finally, the results will be presented in tables along with a narrative description to summarize findings and highlight research gaps related to pelvic floor dysfunctions among the LGBTQIA2S+ population.

REVIEW REGISTRATION: OSF https://osf.io/6bsmz/.