Pelvic floor training can be provided online to patients

Incontinence issues can be successfully cured in the majority of affected patients through correct pelvic floor training, the Irish Osteoporosis Society 2023 Annual Medical Conference was told.

Pelvic floor training also leads to significant improvement in faecal incontinence, constipation, pelvic organ prolapse, and sexual dysfunction, and erectile dysfunction in men, Ms Aoife Ní Eochaidh, Chartered Physiotherapist, Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist, Women’s and Men’s Health and Continence, Bon Secour Consultant’s Clinic, Galway, reported during her presentation on digital therapies in women’s and men’s health.

Ms Ní Eochaidh runs her own digital platform, which provides a home pelvic floor training programme that patients can carry out in the comfort and privacy of their own home. See https://ippm.ie/ for more information.

Also speaking during the conference, Ms Catherine O’Keefe, a former Financial Services Director who now works as a menopause workplace consultant, discussed the practical impact of the menopause on women’s physical and mental health.

She made the point that some of the symptoms of menopause are visual, such as hot flashes and night sweats, but that there are psychological aspects that really impact women, particularly in the workplace. The psychological aspects of menopause can have a devastating impact on the ability of a woman to be able to continue working. Examples are brain fog and anxiety which will affect a woman’s confidence and can be made much worse by lack of sleep. Ms O’Keefe explained how she changed careers after experiencing brain fog herself when going to give a presentation, where she went totally blank.

She also spoke about the importance of early detection of bone loss, as most fractures are preventable and women start to lose bone in perimenopause.