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Incontinence and Pelvic Therapy

Treating bladder, bowel and pelvic floor conditions for men, women and children

HSHS St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital offers specialized treatment for men, women and children with our pelvic therapy program. The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that support your reproductive and urinary tract, including your bladder, uterus or prostate, and rectum. These muscles attach to your pelvis, tailbone and sacrum. In addition to providing support, they also help with bowel and bladder control as well as function.

When the pelvic floor muscles are not working correctly, such as being too weak or unable to relax fully, they often cause pain as well as other symptoms such as urinary/fecal incontinence, or difficulty with emptying the bladder or bowel completely. These issues significantly impact daily life. Common causes of pelvic floor dysfunction can include: infections, pregnancy or childbirth, prostate disorders, chronic stress/anxiety, poor posture, back issues, trauma or surgery.

How can pelvic therapy help?

Pelvic dysfunction can affect anyone regardless of their gender or age, including children. Left untreated, many of these conditions can lead to low self-esteem, withdrawal from physical activity and withdrawal from social situations and personal relationships.

Conditions/Symptoms that pelvic therapy can help include:

Urinary and fecal incontinence
Urinary urgency/frequency/retention
Fecal urgency/frequency
Constipation/incomplete emptying
Post-Prostatectomy Dysfunctions
Pelvic pain
Painful tailbone/coccydynia
Interstitial Cystitis/Painful bladder
Painful intercourse

Getting a referral

St. Anthony's has physical therapists with advanced training and specialization in identifying and treating the multiple contributing factors of pelvic floor dysfunction.

Questions and Referrals

Anyone experiencing one or more symptoms should talk to their doctor about their concerns. A signed physician prescription is required to schedule an appointment.

St. Anthony's accepts most insurances and your insurance benefits can be checked before your evaluation.

For questions or more information about how you may benefit from Pelvic therapy, contact St. Elizabeth’s Pelvic Health Specialty Clinic at 217-347-1243.

Treatment

Once a patient has been evaluated, a treatment plan will be personalized and may include computerized biofeedback, manometry training, and/or balloon training.