Email Newsletter: July 2008

Dear Subscriber,

We hope you find some of the news we're sharing in this quarter's newsletter helpful. Please email us for more information about any item.

Research update Currently in the news are the recommendations emerging from the Fourth International Consultation on Incontinence held in Paris, France this month. Expert Committee 12:"Adult Conservative Management of Incontinence" was co-chaired by Dr Jean Hay Smith a leading expert in the field of conservative management and a participant and leader in Cochrane reviews on similar themes. The committee made a range of recommendations regarding the role of pelvic floor exercises, and various devices, therapies and practices.

Their recommendations mean that health consumers can make confident decisions about their own health in the knowledge that:

• conservative therapies (that is, non-surgical, non-drug-based, low-cost and simple therapies) are appropriate first-line treatments for women and men with urinary incontinence, and women with pelvic organ prolapse
• pelvic floor exercises are the recommended first-line treatment for stress incontinence, urge incontinence and mixed incontinence
• vaginal cones (such as Aquaflex )are an effective therapy for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence, with the proviso that they don't add benefit to pelvic floor exercises, so therefore are an alternative to, rather than a complement to, exercising the pelvic floor muscles
• electrical stimulation (such as delivered by the Pericalm) can be effective therapy for stress urinary incontinence and some cases of urge incontinence, although again, stimulation should be viewed as an alternative to pf exercises
• pelvic floor exercises can help women reduce the severity of a pelvic organ prolapse, prevent it happening at all, and improve surgery outcomes, should surgery prove necessary
• men facing, and recovering from, prostate surgery will benefit from a program of pelvic floor exercises for men as an important component of their full recovery
• magnetic stimulation is generally not considered useful

It's in everyone's interests to see clear evidence-based recommendations, but it's also true that broad recommendations for practice do not necessarily mean that some individuals would not benefit from other treatments. Some disquiet about systematic reviews as a basis for recommending treatments for stress incontinence has been expressed recently, with systematic reviews described as "weak in methodological quality or lack(ing) power to produce reliable results" (Latthe & others 2008). In response to women's questions about why research results sometimes seem to differ, we've listed some of the reasons.

What's new in our product range? We are now able to offer an outstanding new pelvic floor exercise DVD which we are importing directly from the US. The Total Control Pelvic Pyramid DVD offers 75 mins of exercises, carefully designed to build pelvic floor strength for women of all ages. It's the product of the not-for-profit Women's Health Foundation in the US, and we are offering it either on its own or with the theraband and polygrip exercise ball accessories that are used in the program.

Also new to our range are Exercises for the Pelvic Floor DVD by Beate Carriere, and the Preggi Bellies Exercises for Pregnancy DVD, both featuring a gymball to work on both pelvic floor and core stability muscles. Gymballs and a wobble cushion are available too, so that customers can start their exercise program immediately.

With the emphasis on whole body exercise techniques, we also pleased to offer a new book in our range, My Pelvic Flaw by Mary O'Dwyer. Mary is a Queensland physiotherapist who is particularly interested in strategies for protecting the pelvic floor throughout life, including safe and appropriate exercising, and she warns of the dangers to the pelvic floor in many gym-based exercise programs currently on offer.

What's new on our website? We've added to our YouTube product demos, with clips now available on the PFX2 , two clips on the Pericalm Continence Stimulation Unit, one providing a general guide to the Pericalm's features, and one giving information on using the Pericalm. And our original clip on the Aquaflex Pelvic Floor Exercise System is still available. Customers have been enthusiastic about our YouTube clips and have told us that the ability to view a product's features has helped them to decide whether a product is right for their needs.

New product leaflets now available for bulk distribution Our mid-year 2008 product leaflet with up-to-date product range and pricing is available in bulk on request. Please call us on 1300 76 39 40 or email us to receive as many as you wish.

Practitioner services Practitioners are always welcome to borrow a sample set of our products to familiarize themselves and colleagues with what’s available, or to use in a display. And our practitioner discount price list continues to offer product discounts to practitioners. Email us or phone us on 1300 76 39 40 if you'd like to know more.

For more information about these, or any other products or services, please contact us by mail, email or phone.

The Pelvic Floor Exercise Team
PFE Pty Ltd
now PFLEX Pty Ltd t/a Pelvic Floor Exercise
PO Box 7094 Sippy Downs Qld 4556 Australia
Tel: 1300 76 39 40
Fax: 1300 79 44 39
www.pelvicfloorexercise.com.au