Abstract
Physical agents are underutilised in the management of reproductive disorders. Most obstetricians and gynaecologists are not familiar with the benefits of physical modalities in the armamentarium of the physiotherapists. The knowledge deficit often causes the late referral of patients for physiotherapy services. The delay accentuates the lingering debilitating symptoms of the disease and impedes the improvement of the impairments associated with reproductive disorders. This chapter presents the common conditions amenable to physical intervention. They include urinary and faecal incontinence, chronic pelvic inflammatory disease/salpingo-oophoritis, vestibulodynia, dyspareunia, persistent genital arousal disorder, post-mastectomy complications, pre-and postnatal musculoskeletal dysfunctions, postpartum depression, chronic lifestyle disorders, developmental/neurological disorders, and postoperative complications. Understanding this information will prompt patients’ timely referrals for physiotherapy and blunt the impact and progression of the disease process, which can ultimately reduce healthcare costs and duplicative use of services without compromising outcomes.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
World Health Organization (WHO). Disabilities – Africa. 2017. Accessed May 5, 2018.
Devi PS. A timely referral to palliative care team improves quality of life. Indian J Palliat Care. 2011; 17(Suppl): S14–6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3140091/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Auguste BL, Naimark DMJ. Timely referral to outpatient nephrology care slows progression and reduces treatment costs of chronic kidney diseases. Kidney Int Rep. 2017;2(4):77. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468024917301201. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Fritz JM, Childs JD, Wainner RS, Flynn TW. Primary care referral of patients with low back pain to physical therapy: impact on future healthcare utilisation and costs. Spine. 2012;37(25):2114–21.
Fuhrmans V. A novel plan helps hospital wean itself off pricey tests. Wall Street J. 2007. https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116857143155174786. Accessed: July 7, 2021.
Fuhrmans V. Timing of physical therapy initiation for nonsurgical management of musculoskeletal disorders and effects on patient outcomes: a systematic review. J Orthop Sports Phys Therap. 2016;46(2):56–70. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26755406/.
Stubblefield MD. The underutilisation of rehabilitation to treat physical impairments in breast cancer survivors. 2017; PMR. 9(9S2): S317–23.
Standford Medicine. (n.d). Fertility and reproductive healthcare team. https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/service/fertility-and-reproductive-health/careteam Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Manske RC, Lehecka BJ, Reiman MP, Loudon JK. Orthopedic joint mobilisation and manipulation. Human Kinetics. 2018.
OrthoBalance Physical Therapy. Treatment modalities and procedures. 2019. https://www.orthobalancept.com/treatment-modalities-procedures/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Rogers G, Story CM. Kegel exercises for men: do they work? 2016. https://www.healthline.com/health/kegel-exercises-for-men. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Bubnis D, Case L, Goldman C. Exercises to eliminate erectile dysfunction. 2017. https://www.healthline.com/health/erectile-dysfunction/exercises. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Pletcher P, Schaefer A. How to last longer in bed. 2015. https://www.healthline.com/health/mens-health/how-to-last-longer-in-bed. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Elite Pelvic Rehab. Don’t try Kegels until you read this. 2015. https://elitepelvicrehab.wordpress.com/tag/elite-pelvic-rehab/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Hecox B, Mehreteab TA, Weisberg J, Sanko J, editors. Physical agents: a comprehensive text for physical therapists. 2nd ed. Norwalk: Appleton and Lange.
Terlikowski R, Dobrzycka B, Kinalski M, Kuryliszyn-Moskal A, Terlikowski SJ. Transvaginal electrical stimulation with surface-EMG biofeedback in managing stress urinary incontinence in women of premenopausal age: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised clinical trial. Int Urogynecol J. 2013; 24(10):1631–8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3779318/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Waldman SD. The physiologic effects of therapeutic heat. Pain Review 2009. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/short-wave-diathermy. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Nitti VM. The prevalence of urinary incontinence. Rev Urol. 2001;3(Suppl 1):S2–6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1476070/. Accessed: May 5, 2019
Liu L, Zhang Y, Gong J, Chen X, Wu H, Zhu W. Effects of different treatment methods on the clinical and urodynamic state of perimenopausal women with stress urinary incontinence. Iran J Public Health. 2018;47(8):1090–7.
Wu PL, Lee M, Huang TT. Effectiveness of physical activity on patients with depression and Parkinson's disease: a systematic review. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0181515. 2017. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Siegelab AL. Pelvic floor muscle training in males: practical applications. Urology. 2014;84(1):1–7. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0090429514002738. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
LaFlamme M, Ellen Ellis M. Prevention of chronic prostatitis.2016. https://www.healthline.com/health/chronic-prostatitis. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Bø K. Pelvic floor muscle training in the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse and sexual dysfunction. World J Urol. 2012;30(4):437–43. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00345-011-0779-8. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Adams SR, Dessie SG, Dodge LE, Mckinney JL, Hacker MR, Elkadry EA. Pelvic floor physical therapy as primary treatment of pelvic floor disorders with urinary urgency and frequency-predominant symptoms. Female Pelvic Med Reconstr Surg. 2015;21(5):252–6.
Homsi C, Ferreira J, Dwyer PL, Davidson M, De Souza A, Alvarez J, Ugarte H, Frawley C. Does pelvic floor muscle training improve female sexual function? A systematic review. Int Urogynaecol J. 2015; 26(12):1735–50. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00192-015-2749-y. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Van Kampen M. Pelvic floor muscle training after prostate surgery. Lancet J. 2012;379(9811):120. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(12)60058-0/fulltext. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Cohen D, Gonzale J, Goldstein I. The role of pelvic floor muscles in male sexual dysfunction and pelvic pain sexual medicine. Reviews. 2016;4(1):53–62. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2050052115000025. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
García-Sánchez E, Rubio-Arias JA Ávila-Gandía V, Ramos-Campo DJ, López-Román J. The effectiveness of pelvic floor muscle training in treating urinary incontinence in women: a current review. Actas Urol Esp. 2016;40(5):271–8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26614435. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Oh S-T. The management of chronic pelvic pain. J Korean Med Assoc. 2008;51(1):53 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272425195_The_Management_of_Chronic_Pelvic_Pain. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Section on Women’s Health. https://www.womenshealthapta.org/patients/2019. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Balogun JA, Okonofua FE. Management of chronic pelvic inflammatory disease with shortwave diathermy. A case report. Phys Ther. 1988;68(10):1541–5. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/20695857_Management_of_Chronic_Pelvic_Inflammatory_Disease_with_Shortwave_Diathermy_A_Case_Report. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (USDHHS-CDC). Pelvic inflammatory disease. 2017. https://www.cdc.gov/std/pid/stdfact-pid.htm; https://www.cdc.gov/std/pid/stdfact-pid-detailed.htm; https://images.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?p=picture+of+1.+Urinary+and+Fecal+Incontinence&fr=yhs-sz-002&hspart=sz&hsimp=yhs-002&imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.physiotherapyvictoria.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2015%2F05%2FBladder-Control-Incontinence-Victoria-BC.png#id=17&iurl=https%3A%2F%2Fssl.adam.com%2Fgraphics%2Fimages%2Fen%2F9439.jpg&action=click. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Lamina S Hanif S. Shortwave in the management of chronic pelvic inflammatory disease: case reports. J Nigeria Soci Physiother. 2008;16(1):31–8. http://www.jnsp.org/index.php/jnsp/article/viewFile/27/28; https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Shortwave+diathermy+in+the+management+of+chronic+pelvic+inflammatory...-a0190793591. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Lamina S, Hanif S, Gagarawa YS. Short wave diathermy in the symptomatic management of chronic pelvic inflammatory disease pain: a randomised controlled trial. 2008. http://capenergy.com/assets/files/estudios/52-short-wave-diathermy-in-the-symptomatic.pdf. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Sonali J, Kaur A, Mitra M. Effect of short-wave diathermy in reducing pain and improving function in patients with pelvic inflammatory diseases. Indian J Physiother Occup Ther. 2015;9:20–3. http://www.indianjournals.com/ijor.aspx?target=ijor:ijpot&volume=9&issue=2&article=005. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Saif DS, Fotoh DS, EL Kholy RM, Morsi DI, Farag HM. Combined (physical and medical treatment) therapy versus physical treatment alone and medical treatment alone in the management of chronic pelvic inflammatory disease. Egypt Rheumatol Rehab. 2019;46:132. http://www.err.eg.net/article.asp?issn=1110-161X;year=2019;volume=46;issue=2;spage=132;epage=139;aulast=Saif. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Rosen NO, Dawson SJ, Brooks M, Kellogg-Spadt S. Treatment of vulvodynia: pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches. Drugs. 2019;79(5):483–93. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40265-019-01085-1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30847806. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Bergeron S, Brown C, Lord MJ, Oala M, Binik YM, Khalifé S. Physical therapy for vulvar vestibulitis syndrome: a retrospective study. J Sex Marital Ther. 2002;28(3):183–92. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11995597.
Wilkinson EJ. The vulvodynia guideline. J Low Genit Tract Dis. 2005; 9(1):40–51. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15870521. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Women’s Health Physical Therapy and Men’s Pelvic Health (n.d.). https://www.obgyn-physicaltherapy.com/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Brotto LA, Yong P, Smith KB, Sadownik LA. Impact of a multidisciplinary vulvodynia program on sexual functioning and dyspareunia. J Sex Med. 2015;12(1):238–47. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25354520. Accessed: May 5, 2019
Davis SN, Bergeron S, Binik YM, Lambert B. Women with provoked vestibulodynia experience clinically significant reductions in pain regardless of treatment: results from a 2-year follow-up study. J Sex Med. 2013;10(12):3080–7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24034424. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Dionisi B, Anglana F, Inghirami P, Lippa P, Senatori R. Use of transcutaneous electrical stimulation and biofeedback for the treatment of vulvodynia (vulvar vestibular syndrome): result of 3 years of experience. Minerva Ginecol. 2008; 60(6):485–91. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18981976. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Dionisi B, Senatori R. Effect of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation on the postpartum dyspareunia treatment. J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2011; 37(7):750–3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21395897 Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Korda JB, Pfaus JG, Goldstein. Persistent genital arousal disorder: a case report in a woman with lifelong PGAD where serendipitous administration of varenicline tartrate resulted in symptomatic improvement. J Sex Med. 2009; 6(5):1479–86. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19228278. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Juraskova I, Jarvis S, Mok K, Peate M, Meiser B, Cheah BC, Mireskandari S, Friedlander M. The acceptability, feasibility, and efficacy (phase I/ II study) of the OVERcome (olive oil, vaginal exercise, and MoisturizeR) intervention to improve dyspareunia and alleviate sexual problems in women with breast cancer. J Sex Med. 2013;10(10):2549–58. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23635341. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Panchik D, Masco S, Zinnikas P, Hillriegel B, Lauder T, Suttmann E, Chinchilli V, McBeth M, Hermann W. Effect of exercise on breast cancer-related lymphedema: what the lymphatic surgeon needs to know. J Reconstr Microsurg. 2019;35(1):37–45.
Dinas PC, Koutedakis Y, Flouris AD. Effects of exercise and physical activity on depression. Irish J Med Sci. 2011;180(2):319–25. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11845-010-0633-9. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
World Health Organization. Sexual and reproductive health https://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/en/; https://www.who.int/westernpacific/health-topics/reproductive-health 2008. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
World Health Organization. https://www.afro.who.int/health-topics/sexual-and-reproductive-health 2017. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Bezner JR. Promoting health and wellness: implications for physical therapist practice. Phys Ther. 2015; 95(10):1433–44. https://academic.oup.com/ptj/article/95/10/1433/2686492 Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Dennis CL. Treatment of postpartum depression. Part 2: a critical review of nonbiological interventions. J Clin Psychiatry. 2004;65(9):1252–65.
Josefsson T, Lindwall M, Archer T. Physical exercise intervention in depressive disorders: meta-analysis and systematic review. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2014;24(2):259–72. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/sms.12050. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Kvam S, Kleppe CL, Nordhus IH, Hovland A. Exercise as a treatment for depression: a meta-analysis. J Affect Disord. 2016; 15;202:67–86. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165032715314221?via%3Dihub. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Saligheh M, Hackett D, Boyce P, Cobley S. Can exercise or physical activity help improve postnatal depression and weight loss? A systematic review. Arch Womens Ment Health. 2017; 20(5):595–611. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00737-017-0750-9. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Wu PL, Lee M, Huang TT. Effectiveness of physical activity on patients with depression and Parkinson's disease: a systematic review. 2017. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0181515. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Soucy I, Provencher M, Fortier M, McFadden T. Efficacy of guided self-help behavioural activation and physical activity for depression: a randomised controlled trial. Cognit Behav Ther. 2017;46(6):493–506. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/16506073.2017.1337806?journalCode=sbeh20 Accessed: May 5, 2019.
World Confederation for Physical Therapy-WCPT. Physical therapy and mental health. https://www.wcpt.org/sites/wcpt.org/files/files/wptday/18/Booklet/WPTD2018_Booklet_Final.pdf. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Verhagen E, Engbers L. The physical therapist’s role in physical activity promotion. Br J Sports Med. 2009;43(2). https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/43/2/99 Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Developmental disorders (n.d): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developmental_disorderAccessed: May 5, 2019.
Lowrie MB (n.d.). Neurological disorders and their main causes. http://www.icsmsu.com/exec/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/ABS-Neuroscience.pdf Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Obalum DC, Giwa SO, Adekoya-Cole TO, Enweluzo GO. Profile of spinal injuries in Lagos, Nigeria Spinal Cord. 2009;(47):134–7. https://wwwnaturecom/articles/sc200893. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Shuaibu I. Nigeria: Dala orthopaedic hospital handles 480 spinal cord injuries annually. This Day Newspaper 2017. https://allafrica.com/stories/201709070805.html. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Lloyd E. What are the common complications of surgery? 2019. https://www.healthguideinfo.com/first-aid/p67213/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
ProActive Physical Therapy (n.d). Pre-and-post-operative care. https://www.proactivecolorado.com/services/pre-post-operative-care/. Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Reeve J, Denehy L, Stiller K. The physiotherapy management of patients undergoing thoracic surgery: a survey of current practice in Australia and New Zealand. Physiother Res Int. 2007;12(2):59–71. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/pri.354?sid=nlm%3Apubmed Accessed: May 5, 2019.
Balogun JA. Efficacy of physical therapy in the management of reproductive disorders. 2020. In: Physical Therapy Effectiveness. Intech Open Book. ISBN: 978-1-83880-076-5. http://mts.intechopen.com/articles/show/title/efficacy-of-physical-therapy-in-the-management-of-reproductive-disorders. Accessed: June 15, 2020.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Balogun, J.A. (2021). Physiotherapy in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. In: Okonofua, F., Balogun, J.A., Odunsi, K., Chilaka, V.N. (eds) Contemporary Obstetrics and Gynecology for Developing Countries . Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-75385-6_51
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-75385-6_51
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-75384-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-75385-6
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)