Urinary incontinence in the postpartum period is related to biomechanical and hormonal changes that occur during the obstetric period and also related to perineal trauma during childbirth. Physiotherapy is currently presented as one of the conservative options for the treatment of urinary incontinence at this stage, so this review aims to go over scientific literature to assess the effect of physiotherapy on postpartum urinary incontinence.
In February 2022, a bibliographic search was carried out in PubMed, Scopus, Medline, PeDRO and Sport Discuss databases. Studies published within the last 10 years and randomized clinical trials that used physiotherapy techniques for the treatment of postpartum urinary incontinence were identified, but those articles that differ from the objective of the work and those that were duplicated in the databases were excluded.
Out of the 51 articles identified, 8 were finally included that fit the criteria and the subject of the study. Regarding the intervention, we have found that all the articles refer to pelvic floor muscle training. In addition to urinary incontinence, these studies evaluated other variables such as strength, resistance, quality of life and sexual function, obtaining significant results in 6 out of all the studies consulted.
Pelvic floor muscle training is beneficial for the treatment of urinary incontinence in the postpartum period, then supervised and controlled exercise combined with a home training routine is recommended. It is not clear whether the benefits are maintained over time.
Archivos espanoles de urologia. 2023 Feb [Epub]
Paula Diz-Teixeira, Alejandra Alonso-Calvete, Lorenzo A Justo-Cousiño, Yoana González-González, Iria Da Cuña-Carrera
Departamento de Bioloxía Funcional e Ciencias da Saúde, Facultade de Fisioterapia, Universidade de Vigo, Campus A Xunqueira s/n, 36005 Pontevedra, Spain.