Effectiveness of pelvic floor muscle and abdominal training in women with stress urinary incontinence

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of pelvic floor muscle training and abdominal training in women with stress urinary incontinence. The study included 64 female patients (aged 18 to 49 years) with stress urinary incontinence. Patients were randomly allocated into the pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) or pelvic floor muscle plus abdominal training (PFMT+AT) groups. Clinical data included stress test results, pelvic floor activity measurements, and Urinary Distress Inventory, and Incontinence Impact Questionnaire responses. The increase in the pelvic floor muscle activity (from the 0th to the 4th week, from the 4th to the 8th week, and from the 0th to the 8th week) was significantly greater for the PFMT+AT group than for the PFMT group (p < 0.05). The negativity rate of the stress test at the 4th week was significantly higher for the PFMT+AT group (93.7%) than for the PFMT group (53.1%) (p < 0.001). Women with stress urinary incontinence benefit more from pelvic floor muscle training plus abdominal training than from pelvic floor muscle training alone in terms of increasing their pelvic floor muscle activity and quality of life, and they also experience an earlier recovery.