Title
Effect of pelvic floor exercises on postpartum urinary incontinence
Authors
Goswami Dhruviben Ujjavalbharathi1, Mansuri Tanjim Habibahmad1, Pargi Krishnaben Sureshbhai1, Bajat Khushbu Kantibhai1, Sonal Dethe1, Payal Tejmalji Vaghela1, N. Siva Subramanian2 & B. Mahalakshmi3,*
Affiliation
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecological Nursing, Nootan College of Nursing, Sankalchand Patel University, Visnagar, Gujarat, India; 2Department of Psychiatric Nursing, Nootan College of Nursing, Sankalchand Patel University, Visnagar, Gujarat, India; 3Department of Paediatric Nursing, Nootan College of Nursing, Sankalchand Patel University, Visnagar, Gujarat, India; *Corresponding author
Goswami Dhruviben Ujjavalbharathi - E-mail:
dhruvigoswami1811@gmail.com
Mansuri Tanjim Habibahmad - E-mail: tanjimmansuri20@gmail.com
Pargi Krishnaben Sureshbhai – E-mail: pargikrishna2612@gmail.com
Bajat Khushbu Kantibhai - E-mail: kh1696523@gmail.com
Sonal Dethe – E-mail: sonalchristie7@gmail.com
Payal Tejmalji Vaghela- E - mail: ptvaghela.fn@spu.ac.in
N. Sivasubramanian - E - mail: sn.fn@spu.ac.in
B. Mahalakhmi - E - mail: mb.fn@spu.ac.in
Article Type
Research Article
Date
Received September 1, 2026; Revised September 30, 2026; Accepted September 30, 2026, Published September 30, 2026
Abstract
Postpartum urinary incontinence affects the physical and psychological well-being of postnatal mothers and pelvic floor exercises are recommended although reported outcomes vary. A quasi-experimental non-equivalent control group pre-test post-test study was conducted among 60 postnatal mothers in selected hospitals of Mahesana District, with 30 mothers in the experimental group and 30 in the control group. Urinary incontinence was assessed using the Urinary Incontinence Severity Index before and after a structured pelvic floor exercise programme. The mean severity score in the experimental group reduced from 9.26 to 4.66 (t=4.60, p<0.0001) while the control group showed no meaningful change (mean difference 0.15) and severe incontinence fell to 0% in the experimental group against 13.3% in the control group. Thus, data shows that structured pelvic floor exercises effectively reduce postpartum urinary incontinence and can be integrated into routine postnatal nursing care.
Keywords
Postpartum urinary incontinence (UI), pelvic floor exercises, postnatal mothers
Citation
Ujjavalbharathi et al. Bioinformation 22(9): 5837-5840 (2026)
Edited by
P Kangueane
ISSN
0973-2063
Publisher
License
This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.
