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Pelvic Floor Muscle Exercise for Paediatric Functional Constipation

Fatemeh Farahmand1, Aidin Abedi2, Mohammad Reza Esmaeili-Dooki3

  • 1Faculty, Department of Paediatric, Gastroenterology, Children Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences , Tehran, Iran .

Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research : JCDR
|August 19, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Pelvic floor muscle exercise significantly improved functional constipation in children. This non-drug therapy led to better stool consistency and frequency in 90% of participants.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Gastroenterology
  • Physical Therapy
  • Child Health

Background:

  • Functional constipation (FC) is a prevalent gastrointestinal issue in children.
  • Existing medical treatments may not be effective for all pediatric FC cases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy of pelvic floor muscle exercise (PFME) as a treatment for pediatric functional constipation.
  • To assess PFME's impact on various FC symptoms.

Main Methods:

  • Children aged 4-18 with diagnosed FC, unresponsive to medical treatment, participated.
  • An 8-week home-based PFME program was implemented, with exercises performed twice daily.
  • Key outcomes measured included defecation frequency, overall improvement, stool withholding, painful defecation, and stool consistency.

Main Results:

  • Ninety percent (36 out of 40) of children reported subjective overall improvement in FC symptoms.
  • Statistically significant improvements were observed in stool frequency, diameter, and consistency.
  • No significant changes were noted in stool withholding, fecal impaction, fecal incontinence, or painful defecation.

Conclusions:

  • Pelvic floor muscle exercise is a viable and effective non-pharmacological treatment option for pediatric functional constipation.
  • PFME offers a promising approach for managing pediatric FC symptoms.
Abstract

Keywords:
Defecation frequencyGastrointestinal problemsNon-pharmacologic treatment

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