Biofeedback helps women do Kegel exercises

NEW HAVEN, Conn., May 12 (UPI) -- For the one in three U.S. women who suffer the symptoms of weak pelvic muscles, a machine may make doing Kegel exercises easier, a women's foundation says.

"First advocated by Dr. Arnold Kegel in 1948 for the restoration of the perineal muscles, Kegel exercises, or progressive resistance exercises, are recommended for women with stress, urge and mixed incontinence," Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist in private practice in New Haven, Conn., says in a statement.

"The problem is that many women are not correctly doing Kegel exercises."

A self-directed home biofeedback system -- The Myself Trainer -- is designed for women with symptoms of urgency and incontinence. It helps women identify their pelvic muscles, measures the strength of pelvic muscles and provided feedback on how effective a woman's Kegel exercises are.

"The Myself Trainer is easy to use and women in a clinical study did not demonstrate any complications. Other treatments for urge incontinence, such as medication, carry the potential for dry mouth, constipation and other possible effects," Minkin said. "Surgical approaches for patients with stress incontinence carry the risk of bleeding, infection, bladder and bowel damage."