Pregnancy-related Pelvic Girdle Pain and the Pelvic Floor

Orthopaedic musculoskeletal clinicians are often challenged by clients with persistent pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain due to the lack of assessment and treatment skills for the pelvic floor.  This lecture will present an evidence-informed, clinical reasoning approach to this condition and highlight when a referral to a pelvic health physiotherapist is warranted.  It will also provide some introductory tests to determine when the pelvic floor recruitment behavior can be influenced by posture and position of the pelvis and thorax, which may be the first step to resolving pain, incontinence and symptoms associated with pelvic organ prolapse.