It’s a topic that’s often swept under the rug because of embarrassment or perceived social norms, but pelvic floor dysfunction affects a wide range of women, many of whom might feel uncomfortable turning for help. 

And while the disorder can affect men, women and children, local physical therapists’ new, advanced certifications in female pelvic floor dysfunctions bolsters the clinic’s scope of treatment, drawing patients from around the region.

Physical therapists Lois Dolan and Cheri Hampton, at Hampton Physical Therapy in Paducah, enrolled in a multi-day training coursework at the Herman & Wallace Pelvic Health Institute in Seattle to receive advanced training in female anatomy and treating pelvic pain issues.

The certification adds to the clinic’s nearly 15 years of experience in treating problems such as incontinence.

“This course was about pelvic pain issues, primarily in women, and being physical therapists for the pelvic floor muscles, which sometimes require an internal assessment and treatment but can also be treated from the outside,” Hampton said. “There’s a real need here, and nobody is doing it anymore in Paducah.”

Pelvic floor dysfunction refers to a disorder within the layers of pelvic muscle groups that can weaken, tighten or impair the normal function of those muscles and can consequently result in pain, discomfort, incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse or sexual dysfunction, among other common conditions.

The clinic sees a wide range of women with pelvic pain issues from as young as 20 years old and into geriatric patients. Dolan said, however, there is a large group of patients who might not seek treatment for the embarrassment of the condition.

“They’ve been treating this, especially on the West Coast, for years, but because we’re much more conservative in the Midwest, the South, typically people don’t want to talk about it,” she said. “It’s not that the problem hasn’t been there, they just didn’t want to deal with it.”

Patients are required to consult with their physician and receive a pelvic exam before physical therapy can begin, but once cleared, therapists will perform a private, internal exam to determine the layers of muscles involved and appropriate treatment options.

Therapists can use manual treatment to directly massage the muscles involved, or instruct and prescribe patients relaxation or strengthening exercises tailored to the individual needs of the patient.

The clinic also uses technology to determine muscle conditions through the use of a biofeedback sensor. Therapists apply patient sensors internally or externally to analyze muscle tonality in real-time.

With a visual digital image of the patients’ muscle state — firm or relaxed — the therapist can help the patient physically counter the problem, giving the patient a visual indicator to follow.

Dolan said the clinic is the only of its kind treating the dysfunction within a range that extends as far north as St. Louis and south to Nashville, Tenn. Medical centers in these metropolitan centers refer patients to Hampton for the treatment.

“There’s such a need in this area, and we were seeing how people would have to travel to Nashville for physical therapy,” Dolan said. “Now that we have this certification, we can really fulfill the need for people right here.”

Call Will Pinkston, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8676 or follow @WCPinkston on Twitter.