The Royal Dutch Society for Physical Therapy (KNGF) translated evidence-based guidelines

The Netherlands physiotherapists have done a great job at compiling evidenced based PT guidelines including on for SUI.  This is the protocol used for the Hendrick's article we are discussing next week on the Pelvic Physiotherapy Distance Journal Club.  It is another validation of our role in the treatment of SUI.  I have not looked at any of the other guidelines but might be something else interesting on this site. 
https://www.kngfrichtlijnen.nl/654/KNGF-Guidelines-in-English.htm

Contact me if you are interested in being part of the Pelvic Physiotherapy Distance Journal Club. It is a free, phone based, discussion of the literature.  beth@bethshelly.com

New Continence Devices from Verity Medical Ltd

As usual CSM provided a wealth of knowledge and experiences.  I plan to post several blogs highlighting the conference.  Those how know me, know I spend a lot of time in the exhibit hall.  Not for the free stuff (although there was a larger than usual variety of pens and sticky notes this year) but for the contacts.  Visiting with the vendors allows me to stay up on new devices, new books, new courses, and new products.  Thus was the case this year at the Verity Medical booth.  This company was started by Nigel Verity in the late 90s in the UK. Nigel has been in the business of creating EMG machines for many years previously working with Thought Technology.  I had the pleasure of trying the Nutrac™ Pelvator which is being distributed in the US by American Imex.  This is a home electrical stimulation for the PFM.  I used it myself and felt the most comfortable PFM contraction I have felt from any ES device.  I have not used it on patients but plan to experiment more.  I would encourage others to also use this device with their patients.  It has many built-in continence programs, a few custom options and a pain relief mode. 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality - Diagnosis and Comparative Effectiveness of Treatments for Urinary Incontinence in Adult Women

It has been 14 years since the last government guidelines on UI where published.  These guidelines are now open for discussion until MARCH 2nd.  It seems very important for PT to give input.  I have not yet reviewed the document but the table for contents is very complete and behavioural treatments are reviewed.  I would be interested in what others think.  Check it out at this link.
http://tinyurl.com/AHRQguidlines2011

The Journal of Sexual Medicine Volume 8, Issue 2 Page 335 - 633

A great issue with several articles women’s health PTs might be interested in.  Here are a few.

Resident Education and Training in Female Sexuality: Results of a National Survey (pages 361–366)
Apurva B. Pancholy, Linda Goldenhar, Angela N. Fellner, Catrina Crisp, Steve Kleeman and Rachel Pauls
Article first published online: 8 DEC 2010 | DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2010.02117.x

• 91.5% report less than 5 hrs lecture on female sexual dysfunction
• 19.6% report often screening patients for sexual dysfunction
• 82.8% felt confident obtaining a sexual history
• 54.7% felt able to perform a physical exam for sexual function
• 55.1% had cared for women with dyspareunia
• 16.7% had cared for women with vaginismus
• 34 to 56% rarely or never suggest “ancillary therapy” such as counseling and meds – we need to do a better job at educating MD students on our role.

ttmed Urology – Timely Topics in Medicine

This is a wonderful resource and entirely free.  The site has a wealth of information and I am sure you could spend hours searching a reading. Urology is a huge topic and (in my opinion) more than 75% of urology topics are of little to no interest to Pelvic PTs. Focus is mainly on cancer, surgery, and drugs and although we should know some about these topics, in-depth knowledge is not necessary for good clinical practice.   My hope is to do some of the searching for you and provide direction to interesting information.  Most of the information on this site is meant to be viewed on the site – most are not able to be downloaded or saved to your computer.  However, articles can be printed and some podcasts are downloadable. 

Welcome

Welcome to the first posting of the Pelvic Physiotherapy Blog.  As I post many are getting ready to head south (hopefully for warmer weather) to attend the Combined Section Meeting of the American Physical Therapy Association (Feb 8 to 12, 2011 in New Orleans, LA).  This meeting is packed with big name, international speakers like Diane Lee, Paul Hodges, David Wise, Sarah Meeks, and many others.  Remember to download handouts before the meeting at the APTA web site (link below – I hope).  Watch this blog for a review of highlights. 

This blog is a work in progress.  Expect to find summaries of research related to Pelvic Physiotherapy.  Please join in the discussion.  Also check my web site www.bethshelly.com for free stuff and course information.  Let the journey begin and always be joyful.

APTA CSM information and handouts