Pediatric Pelvic Floor Therapy - what we treat and why it is important
Greetings, lovelies! Dr. Laura here. Alexis and I are absolutely thrilled to begin offering pelvic floor physical therapy services for the pediatric population! Children with bowel and bladder disorders are unfortunately at a disadvantage because there are very few places that provide pelvic floor physical therapy. We plan to help bridge this gap.
According to the International Children’s Continence Society (ICCS), children should have daytime and nighttime bladder control by age 5 for a typically developing child. The frustration, anxiety, lack of self-esteem, as well as the development of internalizing and externalizing psychological behaviors of these families who have not achieved this milestone is significant and needs to be addressed.
The most common pelvic floor dysfunctions in the pediatric population are dysfunctional elimination syndrome, withholding, UTIs, and bed wetting. Constipation is also a contributor to urinary leakage or urgency and bed wetting, and with nearly 5% of pediatric office visits occurring for constipation, the need to address these issues is great.
The pediatric population is greatly underserved, causing undue stress for the child and family. A pediatric pelvic floor physical therapist provides treatment of children with day or nighttime incontinence, fecal incontinence, and/or dysfunctional voiding habits. Children with special needs, sensory processing disorders, or musculoskeletal asymmetries also frequently develop poor bowel and bladder habits, including constipation.
As pediatric bowel and bladder dysfunction can persist into adulthood, we will provide pediatric pelvic floor rehabilitation to improve their long term health and well-being!
Blog post written by Dr. Laura Finnern, PT, DPT
Dr. Laura is now accepting new patients at our Collierville, TN office and online. If you have a kiddo that you think could benefit from pediatric pelvic floor therapy, you can schedule an appointment with Dr. Laura here. If you have additional questions, you can set up a free 15 minute phone consult here or reach out to Dr. Laura at laura@absolutekineticspt.com, or call/text (901) 499-5718.
Curious if your child could benefit from seeing a pediatric pelvic floor therapist? Download our free pediatric pelvic floor therapy checklist!