What is the pelvic floor?
The pelvis is the bony structure between the legs and spine. The pelvic floor is the group of muscles that form the bottom of the pelvis. The pelvic floor muscles attach to your tail bone and pubic bone and are comprised of the levator ani muscles, which include the pubococcygeus, puborectalis, and iliococcygeus muscles. These muscles can be damaged after childbirth. Likewise, they may be weakened as a result of aging and menopause. This results in a significant number of women in Singapore requiring physiotherapy.
The pelvic floor muscles:
Support the organs in the pelvis
Help the body to start and stop urine and control bowel movements
Are used during sex (Has a role in sexual health and pleasure.)
Help with posture support and core stability
What is pelvic floor rehabilitation?
Pelvic floor rehabilitation or re-education is not only about pelvic floor exercises. After a thorough assessment by our expert therapists, a treatment plan will target your current problem and identify underlying causes. Treatment modalities vary according to your needs and may include relaxation and/or strengthening pelvic floor exercises, manual therapy, biofeedback, electrotherapy, and advice.
When can pelvic floor rehabilitation help you?
Women’s health physiotherapy treatment methods such as pelvic floor rehabilitation by trained therapists has proven to be effective in treating and preventing many conditions.
Bladder and bowel symptoms such as urine incontinence
Recovery post childbirth
Core stability and back problems
What is the goal and what does treatment constitute?
The main goal of pelvic floor rehabilitation by our therapists is to help you regain a functional pelvic floor and to resolve the symptoms associated with dysfunctional pelvic floor muscles.
Treatment consists of:
Personalized pelvic floor muscle training programme
Techniques to control your bladder and bowel for prevention of incontinence
Use of biofeedback to check the activation of your muscles
Electrical stimulation may be used to help activate the pelvic floor
Prescription of a home exercise programme
Postural exercises and relaxation techniques if required
At the Women & Children Centre Clinic, our women’s health physotherapists can assist you with managing your symptoms and improving the function of your pelvic floor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation Therapy Involve?
Pelvic floor rehabiliation with our therapists includes physical strengthening and/or relaxing of the muscles of the pelvic floor to aid in the improvement of core stability and control over urination, bowel movements, and sexual function.
How Do I Know I Need Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation?
Consult our pelvic floor therapists if you have the following symptoms:
Increase urination frequency in the absence of urinary tract infection.
Urine leakage when coughing, sneezing, laughing, exercising or playing sports.
Unable to control stool (feces) from leaking.
Heaviness and dragging sensation or bulge in the vagina.
Experiencing pain during sex.
How Effective Is Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation?
Generally, most patients enjoy a good success rate and experience an improved quality of life after treatment by our pelvic floor therapists. However, the efficacy is dependent on the severity of the condition treated.
How Often Do You Need To Go For Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation?
Most experts recommend visiting your pelvic floor therapist once a week for a period of eight weeks. But it has to be noted that the treatment duration will change from person to person depending on the diagnosis, severity of the dysfunction and your individual goals.
What Are The Symptoms Of Having Weak Pelvic Floor Muscles?
urine leakage when coughing, sneezing, laughing or running
urine incontinence
inability to reach the toilet in time
unable to control passing gas
reduced sensation in the vagina
dislodging of tampons or having them fall out easily
having a significant bulge at the vaginal opening
a heavy sensation in the vagina
the feeling of heaviness or dragging in the pelvis or back
recurring urinary tract infections
vulval pain, pain during sexual intercourse and an inability to orgasm.
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, contact us for an assessment with our pelvic floor therapists as you may need treatment.
What Causes Weak Pelvic Floor Muscles?
Though the exact cause remains unclear, a number of studies have linked pelvic floor problems to conditions or events that weakens the pelvic muscles and supporting connective tissues.
These include:
childbirth
traumatic injury to the pelvic region
obesity
pelvic surgery
nerve damage
