Abstract
Purpose
To examine the effect of pregnancy pilates-assisted birth preparation training on urinary incontinence (UI) including stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and urge urinary incontinence (UUI) during pregnancy, and the postpartum period and birth outcomes.
Method
In this single-center, single-blind, randomized, controlled study, one hundred and twenty-six participants who have 28–30 weeks of gestation and nulliparous were randomly assigned to receive either the experimental group (n = 63) or control group (n = 63). The study was carried out between March and August 2022. Pregnancy pilates intervention was applied twice in a week, a total of eight weeks to pilates group. The control group was given routine obstetric and pregnancy care. A personal data form and the Michigan Incontinence Severity Index Form (MISI) were used as data collection tools.
Results
The mean weight gains of the experimental group during pregnancy was significantly lower than the control group. The experimental group had almost twice the rate of vaginal birth than those of the control group. The duration of labor mean score of experimental group was five hours and 43 minutes less than the duration of labor of the control group (p < 0.001). After intervention, and postpartum period, the SUI and UUI severity of the experimental group was significantly lower than those of the control group (p < 0.001).
Conclusion
Pilates-assisted childbirth preparation training reduced the severity of UI including SUI and UUI symptoms during pregnancy and the early postpartum. In addition, the decrease in weight gain during pregnancy and the increase in the vaginal birth rate contributed to the shortening of the duration of labor.