Southwest Florida's Health and Wellness Magazine Health and Wellness Articles
By Joseph Gauta, MD, FACOG
It seems like many of us ignore information about the pelvic floor until we ourselves personally have an issue. It’s an out of sight out of mind situation for most, but when we start to experience some of the problems associated with weakened pelvic floor muscles, it’s no laughing matter (pun intended).
The pelvic floor muscles support the vagina, bladder, rectum, small bowel, and uterus. Disorders are often related to pregnancy, childbirth, hormonal imbalance, abdominal or reproductive surgery, and menopause. It’s interesting, though, that many women are reporting symptoms much earlier than in the past. It might be that there are more hormonal disruptors, such as BPA from plastics, environmental or chemical toxins, or it could be that women are more educated than ever before.
Symptoms depend on which organs are affected, and the three major conditions associated with a weakened or stretched pelvic floor are organ prolapse, bladder incontinence, fecal incontinence, and pelvic discomfort. If you sneeze, cough, laugh, jump up and down, and accidentally leak urine, you need to begin a treatment protocol. Likewise, if you have bowel incontinence or can’t fully empty your bowels or bladder, pain with intercourse, or pelvic pain in general, don’t ignore your symptoms.
Prevention
Younger women should take the initiative to start exercising their pelvic floor muscles to strengthen them before they run into problems. However, no matter what stage or level the muscle strength is in, there are multiple treatment options.
How to Strengthen the Pelvic Floor
Options for strengthening the muscles are through exercises called Kegels, which teaches women how to contract and relax the pelvic muscles. There are also at-home devices to help women fully maximize Kegel strengthening. Some of these have technology that records your pelvic strength and confirms whether you are doing Kegel exercises effectively.
Dr. Gauta, Founder of the Florida Bladder Institute, also offers his patients a new, highly-regarded in-office treatment from EMSELLA™.
“While there are multiple ways to treat urinary incontinence, a revolutionary in-office “chair” is the most advanced, non-invasive, simplest treatment to date. Dr. Gauta explained. “Women are declaring it’s impressive results in droves. EMSELLA™ treatment can help get your pelvic floor back in shape and help prevent further pelvic floor problems later in life.”
The EMSELLA Chair is a non-surgical, non-invasive treatment that can significantly improve incontinence. Each 28-minute session is the equivalent of 11,200 pelvic floor exercises. The EMSELLA™ chair is being touted as the “Kegel throne.” It produces high-frequency vibrations with thousands of contractions per session that tighten the pelvic floor muscles and the bladder sometimes as quickly as the first treatment.
Pelvic Organ Prolapse Treatment
Pessary devices also help to support the organs within the pelvic floor. When the organs within the pelvic floor are not supported properly, they can physically droop and fall into the vagina or anus, which creates a heavy, full feeling. Pessary devices are made out of silicone, which is flexible and comfortable. Pessary devices are placed within the vagina and offer a non-surgical option to ‘treat’ pelvic organ prolapse by physically supporting the muscles and organs.
Surgical treatments are also available for advanced cases. Surgical treatment will lift and repair the organ(s) involved or remove the organ, such as with a hysterectomy. Most of these procedures are minimally invasive.
You don’t have to waste money on uncomfortable urinary pads or pullups. There are numerous options to choose from, and they offer real results.
To learn more about this technology, please go to our website at www.FloridaInstitute.com. Call 239-449-7979 to schedule your consultation today.
Florida Bladder Institute
1890 SW Health Pkwy., Suite 205, Naples, FL
info@floridabladderinstitute.com
239-449-7979
