Marte Charlotte Dobbertin Gram , Morten Wang Fagerland , Kari Bø
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Pelvic floor muscle training by competitive rhythmic gymnasts at regular training sessions did not reduce urinary incontinence: a cluster-randomised trial
Question
What is the effect of an expanded warm-up program including pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) compared with usual warm-up on bother and prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) among rhythmic gymnasts? What is the self-perceived effect of PFMT, including its progression over time, assessed via the global rating of change?
Design
A cluster-randomised controlled trial with concealed allocation and intention-to-treat analysis.
Participants
Gymnasts had to be ≥ 12 years of age and training in rhythmic gymnastics ≥ 3 days/week. Twenty-three rhythmic gymnastics clubs were randomised to an experimental group (12 clubs, 119 gymnasts) or a control group (11 clubs, 86 gymnasts).
Intervention
The experimental group performed one set of 8 to 12 near-maximum pelvic floor muscle contractions and exercises for the knees, lower back and hip/groin as warm-up before each training session for 8 months. The control group continued rhythmic gymnastics training as usual without PFMT or additional lower back and lower limb exercises.
Outcome measures
Primary outcomes were bother from UI (score 0 to 21) and prevalence of UI, each measured by the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire - Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICIQ-UI-SF). The secondary outcome measure was the self-perceived effect and its progress over time, assessed using the global rating of change (–5 to 5).
Results
The difference between the groups in the ICIQ-UI-SF total score (ie, UI bother) was clearly negligible (MD –0.48, 95% CI –1.27 to 0.31). The prevalence of UI reduced from 46 to 41% in the experimental group and increased from 32 to 34% in the control group; despite this, the risk difference at 8 months was negligible (RD 0.07) and the confidence interval spanned mainly negligible effects (95% CI –0.08 to 0.21). Experimental group participants rated their global change at a mean of 2.1 (SD 1.7).
Conclusion
Eight months of warm-up before rhythmic gymnastics training sessions that included one set of 8 to 12 near-maximum PFM contractions did not reduce UI bother. The effect on UI prevalence was also likely to be negligible, despite experimental group participants perceiving benefit from the intervention.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Physiotherapy is the official journal of the Australian Physiotherapy Association. It aims to publish high-quality research with a significant impact on global physiotherapy practice. The journal's vision is to lead the field in supporting clinicians to access, understand, and implement research evidence that will enhance person-centred care. In January 2008, the Journal of Physiotherapy became the first physiotherapy journal to adhere to the ICMJE requirement of registering randomized trials with a recognized Trial Registry. The journal prioritizes systematic reviews, clinical trials, economic analyses, experimental studies, qualitative studies, epidemiological studies, and observational studies. In January 2014, it also became the first core physiotherapy/physical therapy journal to provide free access to editorials and peer-reviewed original research. The Australian Physiotherapy Association extended their support for excellence in physiotherapy practice by sponsoring open access publication of all Journal of Physiotherapy content in 2016. As a result, all past, present, and future journal articles are freely accessible, and there are no author fees for publication.