Effectiveness of Adding Voluntary Pelvic Floor Muscle Contraction to a Pilates Exercises Program

"The volunteers were divided in two groups:~Group I: Pilates exercise program involving only the Pilates exercises protocol Group II: Pilates exercises program with voluntary pelvic floor muscle contraction.~The protocol of both groups consisted of 24 bi-weekly 1-h individual sessions of Pilates exercises program.~Both groups performed the same protocol . For the group PEP + PFMC the instructor asked for the maximum contraction muscle of the pelvic floor muscle, during expirations with 5 repetitions performed alternately, thus avoiding pelvic floor muscle exhaustion.~After the 24 sessions, both groups were retested with the same measured methods of the baseline."

evaluated the pelvic floor strength by oxford scale and vaginal pressure before and after the 12 sessions with Pilates Exercises Program on sedentary nulliparous women

evaluated the pubovisceral muscle thickness and levator hiatus area by 3D perineal ultrasound before and after the 12 sessions with Pilates Exercises Program on sedentary nulliparous women