Physical therapy is a very effective and conservative approach to treating pain and the musculoskeletal dysfunction of the pelvic floor region that can occur in both men and women.
These conditions may include:
You will be evaluated by a pelvic health physical therapist who is trained in meeting the unique needs of men and women across a lifespan and is specialized in pelvic floor rehabilitation.
You will leave the evaluation with a much better understanding of your current condition and symptoms, along with a detailed plan of care and home exercise program. Treatment will be specific to your symptoms and can include a variety of treatment options.
Do you find yourself "just in case" peeing or having to run back to the bathroom a few minutes after voiding? You are not alone. Urinary Incontinence affects 25 million adults in the United States. 26% of women between the ages of 18-59 years old have involuntary leakage. 20% of women over 40 years old have an overactive bladder. Between 5-21% of men, ranging from 19-65 years of age, experience urinary incontinence. There are many types of urinary incontinence, the most common being stress incontinence, urge incontinence and mixed incontinence.
Urge Incontinence: the complaint of involuntary urine loss accompanied by or immediately preceded by urgency (a strong desire to void)
Stress Incontinence: the involuntary loss of urine with physical exertion such as with coughing, sneezing, jumping or laughing
Mixed Incontinence: a combination of stress and urge incontinence
These conditions can be treated by behavioral changes, a bladder retraining program, pelvic floor strengthening, pelvic floor relaxation, postural re-education, functional training, biofeedback and/or manual techniques.
1 in 7 American women ages 18-50 experience pelvic pain with 61% having no diagnosis. Chronic pelvic pain can affect between 2-16% of men. Conditions that can cause pelvic floor pain include, but are not limited to, post-partum pelvic syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, depression, constipation, pelvic inflammatory disease, sexual or physical trauma, and endometriosis. Common complaints include pelvic pain, difficulty voiding and defecating, pain with intercourse, limited sitting and the inability to wear tight clothing or jeans.
Types of pelvic pain include:
Treatment for these symptoms and conditions include therapeutic exercise, relaxation training, manual therapy, patient education, psychological and social support, modalities, biofeedback and/or dilators.
50-70% of women experience some form of back, pelvic or hip pain during their pregnancy. This is due to an increase in hormones increasing joint laxity, a change of the body's center of gravity, an increase in body weight and altered posture. Common symptoms include, but are not limited to, low back pain, buttock pain, pelvic pressure and pain and radicular symptoms. Treatment for these symptoms may include manual therapy, therapeutic exercise, relaxation training, patient education, postural training and neuromuscular re-education.
These are only a few conditions that a pelvic health physical therapist can treat. If you have symptoms outside of these you can always speak with your physician or contact our office to discuss if you would benefit from physical therapy.
At your first visit, our pelvic health physical therapist, Anna Duffey, DPT, who is trained in pelvic floor dysfunction will do a comprehensive evaluation. This may include questions about past medical history, the medical history of your current condition and questions about your eating, drinking and voiding habits. Anna will examine your posture and hip/abdominal muscles to determine any tightness or weakness that could be contributing to your condition. The muscles of your pelvic floor will be evaluated to determine any weakness, hyperactivity, hypertonicity or incoordination. This may include an external and internal examination of the pelvic floor muscles. It is recommended that you wear comfortable/athletic attire.
Anna looks forward to working with you to resolve or improve your symptoms to achieve a better quality of life. If you would like to know more information about Pelvic Health physical therapy or if you have any further questions please contact Anna at aduffey@beantownphysio.com or contact our Brookline office at 617-232-7246 to schedule an evaluation.
