Pelvic floor physiotherapists with additional training in paediatric continence are skilled in working with your GP and/or specialist to assist your child and family to manage their bladder and/or bowel control issues.
Did you know:
- 1 in 5 school-aged children in Australia will suffer from persistent bedwetting
- Up to 20% of 4 to 6 year olds have bladder leakage during the day intermittently, and 3% wet during the day twice or more a week
- Young children or adolescents can experience leakage of urine during sport, coughing, sneezing or laughing
- At least 1.5% of school aged children experience leakage from their bowel
- Physiotherapy can help improve these problems in many cases
How can Physiotherapists help
Experiencing incontinence can have significant impacts on a child’s self-esteem and may reduce their participation in social and physical activities. Our team are experts in pelvic floor rehabilitation and managing bladder and bowel control issues in children and adolescents. We are trained to deal with the problem sensitively and respectfully. We can help you and your child understand and address the specific condition. Together we can develop goals and timelines. This often involves working as part of a team with a number of other health professionals including your child’s GP and/or specialist.
What to expect from Physiotherapy
The initial goal of Physiotherapy is to work out what may be causing your child’s incontinence and help your child understand this. Your child’s first consultation will involve a thorough assessment and a lot of questions, which enables the physiotherapist to help you set achievable goals and develop an individualised treatment program. Assessment and treatment may involve:
- Completing a bladder and/or bowel diary, the information from this is very valuable to understanding your child’s problems
- Using abdominal ultrasound to assess your child’s pelvic floor, bladder and bowel
- Using ultrasound and other instruments to help improve pelvic floor dynamics
- Education on the problems and strategies you can use to improve bladder and/or bowel control
- Information on managing constipation (a very common cause for bladder and bowel leakage in children)
- Most importantly, we will support your child through the treatment and recovery process. Managing these problems involves consistent treatment strategies at home and we can help you and your child stay motivated and focused on short and long term goals.
