Pelvic Floor Assessment and Management

 

The pelvic floor supports the organs within the pelvis including the vagina, uterus, bowel and rectum. When the pelvic floor weakens or becomes too tight, the following problems can occur:

 

• Stress Urinary Incontinence: When small amounts of urine leak during activity such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, walking, lifting or playing sport.
   

• Urge Incontinence:Leaking of urine when you have a sudden urge to empty your bladder.
   

• Urinary Urgency: When you have a sudden and strong need to empty your bladder.
   

• Pelvic Organ Prolapse: When one or more pelvic organs "drop" into the vagina. This can occur after childbirth or later in life and can be associated with the following symptoms:
   

  • a heaviness or dragging sensation in the vagina, perineum or lower back

  • a bulge or lump inside or outside the vagina, a slow urinary stream, incomplete bladder emptying, urinary frequency or incontinence.  Bowel symptoms such as incomplete emptying or bowel urgency

  • Discomfort during sexual intercourse 
     

• Pelvic Pain:sexual pain such as vaginismus and dyspareuina, chronic pelvic pain, vulvar pain conditions.
   

• Bowel Dysfunction:symptoms can include faecal incontinence, inablity to control wind, constipation or incomplete bowel emptying.

 

The good news is that many pelvic floor problems can be successfully treated and managed.

 

A vaginal assessment is the best way to assess the function of your pelvic floor muscles. From this, we can determine the strength of these muscles and then prescribe an exercise program that is right for you.

 

We might ask you to complete a "bladder diary" to help determine the relationship between your fluid intake, urinary urge and incontinence.

 

We also use real-time ultrasound to see your pelvic floor muscles working and to give you some visual feedback.