Meta-analysis reveals that there is Grade A evidence for pelvic floor strengthening for urge and stress incontinence. It is recommended that pelvic floor strengthening should be taught by a physiotherapist using internal assessment and treatment techniques, and that this treatment should be the first line of defense for urge and stress incontinence.

—2010, the Cochrane Collaboration published a review, “Pelvic Floor MuscleTraining vs. No Treatment, or Inactive Control Treatments, for Urinary Incontinence in Women.”

87% of people with IC (Interstitial Cystitis) have pelvic floor dysfunction.

94% of people with pelvic floor dysfunction have voiding/ storage issues.

-Apte et. al. “Chronic Female Pelvic Pain- Part 1: Clinical Pathoanatomy and Examination of the Pelvic Region.” Pain Practice . 2011.

In women with IC and Urgency/ Frequency symptoms, after 8-12 weeks of pelvic PT 1-2x/week, improvement was 83% had moderate to marked improvement (50-75% and 75-99%) or complete resolution. 70% with IC had moderate to marked improvement. 65% of participants had decreased pelvic floor tension with sEMG testing.

-Jerome M. Weiss. “Pelvic Floor Myofascial Trigger Points: Manual Therapy for Interstitial Cystitis and the Urgency-Frequency Syndrome”. The Journal of Urology. Vol 166, 2226-2231. December, 2001.

In a comprehensive analysis of the efficacy of an intensive PFR (pelvic floor re-education) program over a time period of 7 years with 390 patients with stress or mixed urinary incontinence, they found a significant and long lasting therapeutic effect of pelvic floor muscle training… prior to therapy more than half of the women had a high grade stress incontinence (grade III on stress provocation test), whereas directly after completion of the therapy only 5% women had a SUI III. Simultaneously, the pelvic floor contraction strength has increased considerably (Oxford-score 2.9– 4.1) and the measured electric EMG-potentials have almost doubled from 11.3 lV to 21.5 lV. This observation is paralleled by the high number of self-reported improvement (94%) and patients’ satisfaction with the therapeutic result. PFMT is effective even with severe urinary incontinence. Improvement can be demonstrated by both subjective and objective means.

- Christian Dannecker Æ Veronika Wolf Æ Renate Raab Hermann Hepp Æ Christoph Anthuber. “EMG-biofeedback assisted pelvic floor muscle training is an effective therapy of stress urinary or mixed incontinence: a 7-year experience with 390 patients.” Arch Gynecol Obstet (2005) 273: 93–97 .