NTC Research Centre to Contribute to a Revolution in Women’s Health Care

The PELVITRACK project, which involves the NTC Research Centre of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, aims to develop a tool to predict perineal tears during childbirth, thereby improving women’s health worldwide. According to experts, this represents a revolutionary step forward.

Perineal injuries and tears—damage to the area between the vagina and anus—are among the most common childbirth-related injuries. Severe cases often require surgical intervention under general anesthesia. “Perineal injuries during childbirth are quite frequent, particularly during a first delivery. As the baby’s head and shoulders pass through the birth canal, pressure on the perineum can result in tears if the tissue is less elastic, the baby is large, or complications arise. These injuries range from minor tears that heal quickly to more severe ones affecting deeper structures such as muscles or the rectum. Postpartum, such injuries can cause pain, discomfort, or weakened pelvic floor muscles. Improperly treated or healed perineal injuries may impact a woman’s sexual health and contribute to psychological distress,” explained Kateřina Ratislavová, Deputy Head of the Department of Nursing and Midwifery at the Faculty of Health Studies, UWB.

Thanks to the PELVITRACK project, obstetricians could prevent these complications in the future. The NTC Research Centre of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen is involved in the development of a tool that can quickly predict a woman's risk of rupturing the perineum during childbirth. Based on this diagnosis, the doctor can immediately suggest preventive measures such as early massage or perineal incision to minimize damage. Thanks to innovative methods, including precomputed biomechanical models and experimental data, this process will be significantly faster than current procedures, which can take months. The new tool should provide results immediately, right at the time of the doctor's visit.

Pioneering infrared technologies are breaking new ground in accurate, non-contact temperature measurement, non-destructive material testing, and the analysis of physiological processes in the human body. In this case, these technologies will be applied to diagnose pelvic floor conditions. “We have been working with infrared technologies at NTC for more than 20 years,” said Professor Milan Honner, Head of the Infrared Technologies Team. “Initially, we focused mainly on industrial applications. In recent years, their potential has increasingly emerged in medical and safety applications, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the PELVITRACK project, we plan to leverage findings from our current research into thermodiagnostics of the human face and redirect the focus of our instruments to a different part of the body.”

According to NTC researcher Vít Nováček, the project is a revolutionary step in women’s health care. “For over 20 years, NTC has been systematically researching women’s health and developing digital twins of the pelvis. This work includes collaborations with urogynecologists from Charles University (Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen and the Biomedical Centre, Institute for the Care of Mother and Child), the Laboratory for Intelligent Systems in Medicine at the University of Western Australia, Portuguese partners INEGI and VirtualCare, the Biomechanics Laboratory at OTH Regensburg in Germany, and South East Technological University in Ireland,” Nováček explained.

In addition to prominent European institutions, NTC is contributing its expertise in this area. “This is a significant scientific achievement. The project is one of only 45 funded under the prestigious Pathfinder Open call by the European Innovation Council. The consortium, including UWB, successfully competed against 1,100 submitted proposals,” highlighted Dita Sládková, Deputy Director of NTC for External Relations.

NTC is the only Czech member of the 14-member international consortium conducting the PELVITRACK project. The project is led by the French Institut Mines-Télécom, with the Pilsen-based research center contributing its top-tier expertise in infrared technologies. NTC will also lead a work package focused on computational modeling of childbirth, a field it has been developing within its Human Body Biomechanical Models Team. Other project partners hail from Italy, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

EIC Pathfinder Open, part of the Horizon Europe program, supports ambitious projects developing radically new technologies, ideally with potential for future market applications.

PELVITRACK Project Partners:

• Institut Mines-Télécom (France – Coordinator)

• École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris (France)

• Groupe Hospitalo-Universitaire Caremeau (France)

• Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (France)

• Centre Hospitalier Régional et Universitaire de Lille (France)

• Centrale Lille Institut (France)

• Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Marseille (France)

• Universidad de Zaragoza (Spain)

• Politecnico di Torino (Italy)

• University of West Bohemia (Czech Republic)

• INEGI – Instituto de Ciência e Inovação em Engenharia (Portugal)