A Simple and Effective Way to Teach the Clinical Importance of the Perineal Body

The perineal body is located where four muscles (the superficial anal sphincter, the bulbospongiosus and both superficial transverse perineal muscles) have a common insertion at a nondescript point between the vagina or penile bulb and the anus. Health professions students have difficulty identifying its location and do not have a full appreciation of its function. Clinically, it provides support for the pelvic organs, especially in women. To help clarify the function of the perineal body, a demonstration can be performed which uses three student volunteers and a faculty member. By using one of their hands to represent the perineal muscles, a "perineal body" can be formed. As each person pulls in their respective direction, tension on the "perineal body" is formed; illustrating the concept that the perineal body provides pelvic organ support. During the demonstration, the faculty member discusses the clinical importance of the perineal body. The whole high yield demonstration takes less than two minutes to complete.