Pelvic Floor Therapy / Women’s Health

Intro to Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that form a sling from the pubic bone to the coccyx bone. The pelvic floor muscles help to support the pelvic organs and spine, assist in bowel and bladder control, and contribute to sexual function.

Like any muscle, the pelvic floor muscles can be trained with regular exercise so they may do their job well. Therapy can help improve bladder and bowel control, reduce the risk of prolapse, improve recovery from childbirth and surgery, better recovery after prostate surgery, increased sexual sensation, and increased social confidence and quality of life.

Premier PT is a pelvic floor specialist offering analysis and treatment to help both men and women relieve pain or the dysfunction of the pelvic floor muscles.

Conditions treated

• Urinary Incontinence
• Urinary Frequency
• Urinary Urgency
• Overactive Bladder
• Pelvic Pain
• Vaginismus
• Fecal Incontinence
• Constipation
• Rectal Pain

Rehabilitation Process

At the initial evaluation, patients will be asked questions such as their most bothersome symptoms, average number of accidents, when leakage occurs, daily fluid intake, frequency or bathroom breaks, number of pads used in one day, night time occurrences, intensity or location of pelvic or rectal pain, etc.

The assessment consists of measurements of the pelvic floor muscle tone to evaluate the contraction and relaxation of muscles and establish an optimal plan of care.

Follow up appointments may consist of, but are not limited to:

• Education on pelvic health – Patients may need to learn more on bladder health, bladder irritants, urge techniques and how habits may affect their symptoms.
• Pelvic floor exercises – Patients are taught how to effectively contract and relax their pelvic floor, engage the deeper core muscles to improve posture, and taught proper breathing techniques.
• Manual therapy – The physical therapist may use hands on techniques to improve tissue tone and allow for better muscle coordination.
• Pelvic floor biofeedback – Biofeedback is a machine used so patients may have a visual on how the muscles are performing. To do this, a probe is inserted into a woman’s vagina or a man’s anus and results are displayed on a computer screen. There is also external electrodes that may be used instead.
• Electrical stimulation – A low voltage electrical current may be used to teach patients how to coordinate their muscle contractions.
• Vaginal dilators – These tube-shaped devices can help women learn to relax and expand their pelvic muscles to allow easier penetration.