Relationship between Frequency of Performing Pelvic Floor Muscle Exercises and Stress Incontinence in Antenatal&postnatal Period

Background:Stress urinary incontinence is a common problem among women of all ages but may resolve with pelvic floor muscle exercises (PFME) in many cases. The present study was done to find out if there was any link between frequency of performing pelvic floor muscle exercises and frequency of reported symptoms of stress incontinence in the ante-natal&post-natal period in Indian population.

Method: A survey was carried out with a sample of fifty women attending a health visitor's clinic. The women were approached at 8 weeks post natally and were required to fill questionnaire II. Essential details of the ante-natal period, i.e. around 34 weeks of pregnancy, were obtained from the past medical records and the data was used to fill in questionnaire I. The statistical analysis was done using the SPSS to find relationship between frequency of performing PFME&frequency of stress incontinence.

Results: Results from the present study suggest that frequency of Pelvic Floor Muscle Exercises (PFME) performed in antenatal and postnatal period is related to frequency of symptoms of stress incontinence.

Conclusion: The main conclusion of the study, there appears to be a relationship between frequency of performing PFME&frequency of stress incontinence in the Indian population: women who regularly exercise their Pelvic Floor Muscles in the ante-natal&postnatal period are significantly less likely to report symptoms of stress incontinence compared to those who exercise less often.