University of Saskatchewan
Research Spotlight
Saskatchewan Welcomes a Dedicated Clinic for Patients with Obstetric Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASIs):
Saskatchewan is thrilled to welcome Dr. Maria Giroux, who joined as a urogynecologist and an Assistant Professor in December 2024. Dr. Giroux completed residency training at the University of Saskatchewan and subspecialty training at the University of Toronto. She is currently collaborating on more than 10 academic projects and provides mentorship to learners in research. Her academic interests include obstetric anal sphincter injuries (OASIs), pelvic floor pain, and persistent postpartum pain (PPP). Dr. Giroux established the Centre for OASIs, which is a dedicated clinic with endoanal ultrasound for patients with OASIs, where she envisioned a novel longitudinal care model and conducts research in obstetrical trauma. The Centre for OASIs collaborates with the Saskatchewan Pelvic Floor Pathway, which is a publicly funded multidisciplinary program that provides care for women with pelvic floor disorders in Saskatchewan.
Special Research Interest in OASIs:
Saskatchewan’s urogynecology group has a special interest in OASIs. The Saskatchewan OASIs Care Pathway was designed in 2020 by a multidisciplinary OASIs Subcommittee, which included Dr. Corrine Jabs (co-chair), Dr. Maria Giroux (co-chair), Dr. Anita Harding, Dr. Rashmi Bhargava, Suzanne Funk, Leah Thorp, Karen Webb, and Amanda Dornstauder. This pathway focuses on prevention, patient and provider education, pelvic floor rehabilitation, and short-term and long-term management of OASIs.
Dr. Corrine Jabs and Dr. Maria Giroux are collaborating on academic activities in OASIs, which included a publication on implementation of Episcissors-60 for prevention of OASIs. Dr. Corrine Jabs, Dr. Maria Giroux, Dr. Anita Harding, Dr. Almereau Prollius, and Suzanne Funk presented a multidisciplinary hands-on session for repair of OASIs using pig bottoms in Regina and Saskatoon in January 2025. Dr. Giroux is the lead author of the upcoming Long-Term Management of OASIs SOGC guideline. She is also co-authoring the upcoming IUGA’s international OASIs guideline and the 2024 Short-Term Management of OASIs SOGC’s guideline. She is collaborating with IUGA’s Obstetric Pelvic Floor and Anal Sphincter Injuries Special Interest Group to advance obstetrical trauma patient and provider education nationally and internationally.
Other Areas of Research:
Dr. Corrine Jabs and Dr. Maria Giroux are collaborating on urogynecology research with pelvic health physiotherapists, Leslie Beck and Nadeane Nelson, and a women’s health nurse practitioner, Amanda Cameron, at the Saskatchewan’s Pelvic Floor Pathway. They are also conducting research in a novel nonoperative stretching technique for management of early postoperative urinary retention (POUR) after a midurethral sling procedure. Dr. Maria Giroux is currently collaborating with a medical artist in UK on a novel 3D model for patient education in pelvic floor disorders.
Saskatchewan’s urogynecology group also has a research interest in pelvic floor pain and collaborates with MIS colleagues. A multidisciplinary team that included Dr. Maria Giroux, Dr. Huse Kamencic, Dr. Rashmi Bhargava, and Suzanne Funk created a training program for teaching the assessment of pelvic floor musculature to identify a musculoskeletal cause, or contribution, to chronic pelvic pain. The video version was published as the monthly e-lecture at the IUGA Academy and the hands-on version was developed into a workshop that was presented nationally. This training program was promoted in Belgium at the pelvic floor birth trauma masterclass and the RCT was published in IUJ. The virtual version has 265,000 views from more than 100 countries and was presented locally, nationally, and internationally.
2019-2025 Publications List:
- Globerman D, Ramirez AC, Larouche M, Pascali D, Dufour S, Giroux M. Guideline No. 457: Obstetrical Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASIs) Part I: Prevention, Recognition, and Immediate Management. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2024 Dec;46(12):102719. doi: 10.1016/j.jogc.2024.102719. PMID: 39581327.
- Zhang S, Blokker A, Borazjani A, Hong C, Chaikof M, Giroux M, Edell H, Eltahawi A, Ameri G, McDermott C. A feasibility study of three-dimensional ultrasound imaging of the vagina under distension. Med Phys. 2024 Jan;51(1):80-92.
- Giroux M, Karreman E, Emslie E, Jabs C. Implementation of Episcissors-60 for Prevention of Obstetric Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASIs). J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2023;45(6):410-416. doi: 10.1016/j.jogc.2023.04.006.
- Giroux M, Naqvi N, Alarab M. Correlation of anorectal symptoms and endoanal ultrasound findings after Obstetric Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASIs). Int Urogynecol J. 2023 Sept; 34(9): 2241-2247.
- Naqvi N, Giroux M, Alarab M. Correlation of Anorectal Symptoms and Endoanal Ultrasound Findings After Obstetric Anal Sphincter Injuries (OASIs) [Abstract]. Continence 2S2 2022. doi: 10.1016/j.cont.2022.100379.
- Giroux M, Funk S, Bhargava R, Kamencic H, Karreman E. Randomized Comparison of Hands-on Versus Video-based Training Program Designed to Enhance Pelvic Floor Examination in Patients Presenting with Chronic Pelvic Pain. International Urogynecology Journal 2021;32(2):423-431. doi: 10.1007/s00192-020-04487-y
- Giroux M., Kamencic H., Fras T., McLellan S., Onasanya O., Adanlawo A., Patel R., Carson G. Expectant management of a viable Cesarean scar pregnancy complicated by uterine dehiscence and massive hemorrhage: a case report and literature review. Gynecol Pelvic Med 2021 Mar. doi: 10.21037/gpm-19-39.
- Giroux M., Kamencic H., Fras T., McLellan S., Onasanya O., Adanlawo A., Patel R., Carson G. Expectant management of a viable Cesarean scar pregnancy complicated by uterine dehiscence and massive hemorrhage: a case report and literature review. Gynecol Pelvic Med 2021 Mar. doi: 10.21037/gpm-19-39.
- Jabs C., Giroux M., Minion J., Karreman E., Faires M. Evaluation of Adjunctive Azithromycin Prophylaxis in Women Undergoing Cesarean Delivery in a Settling with Low Baseline Incidence of Surgical Site Infection. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2021 Jan 5;S1701-2163(20)31038-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jogc.2020.12.016.
- Giroux M, Jabs C, McLellan S, Beck LP, Scollan A, Nelson N, Karreman E, Howe C, Henni J. Effectiveness of pessary and pelvic floor physiotherapy alone and in combination for management of stress and mixed urinary incontinence: a literature review. Gynecol Pelvic Med 2020;3:3. doi: 10.21037/gpm.2020.02.02
- Giroux M, Funk S, Bhargava R, Kamencic H, Karreman E. Randomized Comparison of Hands-on Versus Video-based Training Program Designed to Enhance Pelvic Floor Examination in Patients Presenting with Chronic Pelvic Pain [Abstract]. Canadian Journal of Pain 2020. doi: 10.1080/24740527.2020.1741980.
- Giroux M, Funk S, Bhargava R, Kamencic H, Karreman E. Randomized Comparison of Hands-on Versus Video-based Training Program Designed to Enhance Pelvic Floor Examination in Patients Presenting with Chronic Pelvic Pain [Abstract]. Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery. 2020;25:15S.