AUBURN — The Women’s Specialty Center will presents “Break Free from PFDs: Pelvic Organ Prolapse – Bladder and Bowel Control Problems” from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12, at Martindale Country Club, 527 Beech Hill Road.

Ted Roth, MD, urogynecologist and specialist in female urology, urinary and bowel incontinence and pelvic pain, will discuss pelvic organ prolapse, a pelvic floor disorder (PFDs) that affects quality of life for many women. PFDs as a general disorder impact one in three women at some point during their lives.

Roth is one of a relative few Maine doctors who have earned certification in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery. He was part of the inaugural class of the new board certification jointly granted by the American Board of Urology and the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology last year.

This specialty, also known as urogynecology, is concerned with the care of women with pelvic floor dysfunction and addresses such problems as fecal and urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, pelvic pain disorders and voiding dysfunction.

The pelvic floor consists of the muscles, ligaments, connective tissue and nerves that help support and control the rectum, uterus, vagina and bladder. The pelvic floor can be damaged by childbirth, repeated heavy lifting, chronic disease or previous surgery. Women who have pelvic floor dysfunction may experience a variety of problems.

Roth is director of the Bladder Control Center and chief of obstetrics and gynecology at Central Maine Medical Center, where he has practiced since 2005. Prior to his move to Maine, Roth was an assistant professor with the Division of Gynecologic Specialties at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Miss.

Roth continues to contribute to the urogynecologic surgery research literature and present at national meetings. He has written several book chapters on the surgical management of female urogynecologic problems.

CMMC’s Women’s Specialty Center is hosting this educational event as part of a public awareness campaign to help women impacted by PFDs and to help minimize discomfort around conversations about such intimate disorders. The campaign was launched by the PFD Alliance this fall.

A social hour will begin with light refreshments at 5:30. Roth will begin his presentation at 6 p.m.

To register or for more information, call the Women’s Health Center at 795-7180 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.