Effect of Kegel Exercises on the Management of Female Stress Urinary Incontinence: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

Abstract

Objective. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Kegel exercises on reducing urinary incontinence symptoms in women with stress urinary incontinence. Methods. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were conducted on females with stress urinary incontinence who had done Kegel exercises and met inclusion criteria in articles published between 1966 and 2012. The articles from periodicals indexed in KoreaMed, NDSL, Ovid Medline, Embase, Scopus, and other databases were selected, using key terms such as "Kegel" or "pelvic floor exercise. " Cochrane's risk of bias was applied to assess the internal validity of the RCTs. Eleven selected studies were analyzed by meta-analysis using RevMan 5.1. Results. Eleven trials involving 510 women met the inclusion criteria. All trials contributed data to one or more of the main or secondary outcomes. They indicated that Kegel exercises significantly reduced the urinary incontinence symptoms of female stress urinary incontinence. There was no heterogeneity in the selected studies except the standardized bladder volumes of the pad test. Conclusion. There is some evidence that, for women with stress urinary incontinence, Kegel exercises may help manage urinary incontinence. However, while these results are helpful for understanding how to treat or cure stress urinary incontinence, further research is still required.

Therapeutic effects of Low intensity extracorporeal low energy shock wave therapy (LiESWT) on stress urinary incontinence

“…Although Kegel exercise was recommended by the International Continence Society, there are no standard exercise parameters of muscle contraction and relaxations, such as frequency, duration, repetitions, and the positions. Without immediate clinical improvement and cannot check their own exercise posture leading patients to give up Kegel exercises easily 38 . The right approach is more important than using an assisting device.…”

Safety and Efficacy of a Non‐Invasive High‐Intensity Focused Electromagnetic Field (HIFEM) Device for Treatment of Urinary Incontinence and Enhancement of Quality of Life

“…To increase patient's QOL by reduction of UI severity, many treatment methods addressing the weakened PFM via its (in)voluntary stimulation were introduced in the past. These include Kegel exercise , PFM exercise with bio‐feedback , surface and intravaginal electrotherapy and vaginal cones , however all these techniques have limitations. It was estimated that 30–50% of women do not perform PFM exercises properly , and a common issue with electrical stimulation is the discomfort caused by the electrodes and the risk of vaginal infections .…”

Investigating the combined effect of pelvic floor muscle exercise and mindfulness on sexual function in women with multiple sclerosis: a randomized controlled trial

“…5 Therefore, in addition to pharmacotherapy, 6 different strategies such as consultation, 7 behavior therapy, 8 acupuncture, and sport 9 were investigated to improve female sexual function. There is some research evidence suggesting that pelvic floor muscle exercise-as a physical method for strengthening pelvic floor muscles-might help, 10 not only to control the urine 11 but also to improve sexual function in both genders. [12][13][14] The results of a recent study suggest that more than a third of multiple sclerosis patients have experienced signs of pelvic floor weakness.…”