Urinary incontinence in pregnancy is a common condition that usually regresses spontaneously after the baby is born and can be caused by:
- Baby weight that makes the urinary sphincter more relaxed; Hormones that serve to prevent contractions that also relax the muscles of the perineum; Displacement of the uterus with the growth of the baby that alters the position of other organs and presses the bladder.
Despite being a problem that usually disappears after delivery in case of induced delivery, in situations where the baby weighs more than 4 kg or takes a long time to be born the woman may have urinary incontinence, as the muscles of the perineum stretch a lot during delivery and become more flaccid, causing involuntary leakage of urine.
Treatment for urinary incontinence in pregnancy
The treatment for urinary incontinence in pregnancy aims to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles through their contraction to decrease episodes of urinary incontinence.
Thus, treatment can be done through physiotherapy with electrical stimulation, in which the pelvic muscles contract involuntarily due to a light and bearable electrical current.
Another treatment option for urinary incontinence in pregnancy is the pelvic floor muscle contraction exercises, which are called Kegel exercises.
Kegel exercises consist of the contraction of the pelvic muscles, as shown in the image.
To perform the exercises you must:
- Empty the bladder; Contract the pelvic floor muscles for 10 seconds. To identify what these muscles are, you only have to stop the flow of urine when you are urinating. This movement is the one you have to use in contraction; relax your muscles for 15 seconds.
Kegel exercises should be repeated 10 times in a row, about 3 times a day.
The most important thing is for the woman to be aware of the muscle that must contract and contract it several times a day. The more exercises you do, the faster you will be cured. This exercise can be done sitting, lying down, with legs open or closed.
Watch the following video, in which nutritionist Tatiana Zanin, Rosana Jatobá and Silvia Faro talk in a relaxed way about urinary incontinence, especially in the postpartum period:
