Your Pelvic Floor Muscles
Pelvic floor muscle retraining may reduce the numbers of leakage episodes, the amount of leakage and the symptoms of urinary incontinence
Your Pelvic Floor Muscles
Your pelvic floor provides essential support for your vital organs. This key region of the pelvis, extending from pubic bones to tailbone and sit bones across both sides, is composed of endopelvic fascia, a pelvic diaphragm and urogenital diaphragm.
These muscles provide crucial structural strength in men or women - supporting not only bladder and bowel functions but also woman's uterus too! Openings through this all-important band ensure that urine and feces exit as needed.
These muscles provide crucial structural strength in men or women - supporting not only bladder and bowel functions but also woman's uterus too! Openings through this all-important band ensure that urine and feces exit as needed.
How can pelvic floor muscle problems develop?
Your pelvic floor muscles can be weakened by childbirth, surgery, heavy lifting, being overweight, menopause or constipation.
PELVIC FLOOR PROBLEMS WITH PREGNANCY AND AFTER CHILDBIRTH
During pregnancy the hormone relaxin helps to relax stabilizing ligaments around the pelvis in order to ease the passing of the baby through the birth canal. In some cases, the relaxed ligaments may not return to their normal properties and you may be left with public ligament laxity and instability. When your pelvic ligaments become weak, this can cause your pelvic floor muscles to contract continuously against an unstable base. This can cause muscles spasm and pain.
PELVIC FLOOR PROBLEMS AND ITS RELEVANCE TO SPORTS INJURY
Women involved in high performance, high impact sports should be educated in preventative pelvic floor dysfunction strategies. These strategies can help to prevent adverse reactions of prolonged high performance sports involvement on the muscles of the pelvic floor. Some of these adverse reactions later in life can include urinary incontinence, constipation, painful intercourse, vaginal laxity and pelvic organ prolapse.
PELVIC FLOOR AND OBESITY
According to the journal Best Practice and Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynecology obesity is associated with higher prevalence of pelvic floor disorders. Urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence and sexual dysfunction are more prevalent in patients with obesity. While weight loss is a major factor in improvement of these symptoms, pelvic floor treatment can lead to increasing patients' quality of life.
PELVIC FLOOR PROBLEMS AND MENOPAUSE
With menopause pelvic floor muscles, just like other muscles in your body, can weaken. However, pelvic floor pain or symptoms of urinary frequency (constantly needing to go to the toilet) or urgency (needing to get to the toilet in a hurry) are not normal part of menopause or at any other time.
Having to pee a lot is just one symptom. Other symptoms of pelvic floor muscle problems can include
Incontinence – Leakage of urine or feces.
Urgency – A strong urge to urinate or defecate.
Frequency – Having to urinate so often that it disrupts your usual daily routine.
Chronic Pelvic Pain – pain, burning or pressure in the pelvic region.
Constipation – difficulty passing stools
Painful Intercourse
Nocturia – waking often at night to urinate
The Evidence for Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy
There is good evidence to support the use of pelvic floor muscle retraining as a first line strategy for incontinence. Pelvic floor muscle retraining may reduce the numbers of leakage episodes, the amount of leakage and the symptoms of urinary incontinence. Additionally, literature reviews from the Cochrane Collaboration have shown that women who have undergone pelvic floor training for urinary incontinence were:
Eight times more likely to have cure or improvement than those that did not
More likely to report improvement in quality of life
Authors were confident that pelvic floor muscle training can cure or improve symptoms of urinary incontinence and stress urinary incontinence
Pelvic floor muscle retraining can help
There is now some evidence available indicating a positive effect of pelvic floor muscle retraining for prolapse symptoms and severity.
Kegel exercises are a powerful tool in the conservative treatment of pelvic floor dysfunction, however they may not be recommended for everyone. If your muscles are too weak or overly tight Kegels can worsen your symptoms. So it's important to work with your pelvic floor physiotherapist before engaging in any strengthening regimen.
Kegel exercises are a powerful tool in the conservative treatment of pelvic floor dysfunction, however they may not be recommended for everyone. If your muscles are too weak or overly tight Kegels can worsen your symptoms. So it's important to work with your pelvic floor physiotherapist before engaging in any strengthening regimen.
Meet our pelvic floor physiotherapists
At Family Physiotherapy, all aspects of your care is performed in a professional manner. Assessments and treatments take place in private rooms. We focus on evidence based practices to optimize your recovery. Our pelvic physiotherapists have also completed advanced pelvic and spinal training. They can help you with your pelvic floor and any additional symptoms you may be having.
Meet our Team of
Pelvic Floor Physiotherapists
Julianna Chan, PT
Physiotherapist
Julianna is a graduate of Western University with an Honours degree in Kinesiology and holds a Master of Science in Physiotherapy from the University of Toronto. She believes
in an individualized, exercise-based approach to rehabilitation, complemented by hands-on manual therapy to optimize your recovery and function.
BOOK WITH JULIANNAin an individualized, exercise-based approach to rehabilitation, complemented by hands-on manual therapy to optimize your recovery and function.
Nadia Rossi, PT
Physiotherapist
As an active individual who has always had an interest in sports and fitness Nadia understands the importance of proper recovery and injury prevention. She combines education, manual therapy and exercise to create an individualized treatment plan that recover and regain your function.
BOOK WITH NADIA
Tanya Kestenberg, PT
Physiotherapist
Tanya is a McMaster University Honours Kinesiology graduate. She completed her Master’s degree in physiotherapy at the University of Toronto.
BOOK WITH TANYA
