Pelvic Health Physical Therapy

Our Approach to Treatment

A highly specialized group of doctoral-educated physical therapists leads our pelvic floor rehabilitation team. Houston Methodist has the only board-certified, residency-trained pelvic health specialists in Houston.

Pelvic health physical therapy restores muscle and postural dysfunction and skeletal misalignment, which contribute to bladder and bowel control loss, sexual dysfunction and pelvic pain.

Conditions Treated

• Urinary incontinence
• Fecal incontinence
• Urinary retention
• Pelvic organ or rectal prolapse
• Interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome
• Constipation
• Post-prostatectomy/reconstructed bladder
• Pregnancy and postpartum
• Vaginal, penis or rectal muscle spasm or soft tissue tightness
• Pudendal neuralgia or pudendal nerve entrapment
• Surgical or episiotomy pain
• Vulvar and vaginal pain or burning
• Abdominal and pelvic girdle pain
• Pain with urination or defecation
• Testicular and groin pain

Treatments

• Perineal biofeedback – computer graphs and audible tones show you the muscles you are exercising. It allows a therapist to measure muscle strength and individualize an exercise program
• Rehabilitative ultrasound – evaluates muscle and related soft tissue forms and function during exercise
• Percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) – a slim needle electrode inserted near the ankle is connected to a battery-powered stimulator. Impulses from the stimulator travel through the needle electrode, along the leg and to the nerves in the pelvis that control bladder function
• Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS)/Interferential (INF) – electrical stimulation for pain relief
• Functional electrical muscle stimulation

Therapies

  • Bladder/toilet training
  • Deferment techniques – learning to hold urine
  • Pelvic floor relaxation and coordination techniques to decrease urgency and improve bowel/bladder emptying
  • Electrical stimulation to ease bladder urgency or increase muscle tone
  • Nutritional and lifestyle counseling
  • Manual therapy techniques to decrease bladder/bowel urgency, pain and constipation
  • Home exercise prescriptions for pelvic girdle and abdominal muscles
  • Electrical stimulation for pain or muscle relaxation
  • Sexual education and position modification
  • Postural and movement impairment alterations
  • Home dilator use
  • Bracing and taping for pelvic and spinal alignment and pain reduction
  • Kegel exercises – one of the most common rehabilitation methods, where the patient tightens and relaxes the pelvic floor muscles over and over again, to strengthen the pelvic region. Studies show these techniques reduce both stress and urgency incontinence

Our Locations

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