Laws regulating patient care are an essential component of protecting patients and doctors alike. No studies have previously examined what laws exist regarding pelvic examinations in the United States (US). This study systematically reviews and compares regulation and legislation of pelvic examinations in the U.S. and provides a comprehensive resource to educate clinicians, patients, and lawmakers. Each of the fifty States in the U.S. was included. The primary outcome was existence of any pelvic or rectal exam laws. Data was obtained for the type of examination defined within the law, exceptions to the law, to whom the law applied to, the type of consent required, and to whom the consent applied to. Laws were identified from each of the individual state legislative websites. All sections of each law pertaining to pelvic examination were reviewed and organized by state. Descriptive statistics were performed for each of the variables, including frequencies of each amongst the fifty states. State regulation for pelvic examinations varied from no law or regulation to laws pertaining to pelvic, rectal, prostate, and breast examination performed in any context. As of November 22, 2022, there are twenty states (40%) with pelvic examination laws applying to anesthetized or unconscious patients. Thirteen additional states (26%) have proposed pelvic exam laws. Seventeen states (34%) do not have any laws regarding pelvic examinations. Regulation of pelvic examinations has become an increasingly important issue over the past few years in response to growing concerns of patient autonomy and the ethical issues raised by such sensitive examinations. While pelvic examination laws that balance protection for patient autonomy and the needs of caregivers and educators exist in much of the U.S., more work needs to continue in consultation with physicians and health care providers to ensure that all states have reasonable laws protecting the autonomy of patients while also maintaining quality of care.

中文翻译：

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美国骨盆检查法：系统回顾

规范患者护理的法律是保护患者和医生的重要组成部分。之前没有研究调查过美国 (US) 有哪些关于骨盆检查的法律。本研究系统地审查和比较了美国盆腔检查的法规和立法，并提供了全面的资源来教育临床医生、患者和立法者。美国五十个州中的每一个都包括在内。主要结果是存在任何盆腔或直肠检查法。获得了法律规定的检查类型、法律例外情况、法律适用对象、所需同意类型以及同意适用对象的数据。法律是从每个州的立法网站上识别出来的。每部法律中与骨盆检查有关的所有部分均由各州审查和组织。对每个变量进行了描述性统计，包括五十个州中每个变量的频率。各州对骨盆检查的规定各不相同，从没有法律或法规到有关在任何情况下进行的骨盆、直肠、前列腺和乳房检查的法律。截至 2022 年 11 月 22 日，有二十个州 (40%) 的盆腔检查法适用于麻醉或失去知觉的患者。另外 13 个州 (26%) 提出了骨盆检查法。十七个州 (34%) 没有任何关于骨盆检查的法律。在过去几年中，为了应对对患者自主权的日益关注以及此类敏感检查引发的伦理问题，骨盆检查的监管已成为一个越来越重要的问题。虽然在美国大部分地区存在平衡保护患者自主权与护理人员和教育工作者需求的盆腔检查法律，但仍需要继续与医生和医疗保健提供者协商开展更多工作，以确保所有州都有保护患者自主权的合理法律同时保持护理质量。