Article: Pelvic floor muscle training aids labor.

2004 AUG 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Pelvic floor muscle training during pregnancy seems to facilitate labor, say researchers in Norway.

Their study challenges a myth that prevails among birth attendants that strong pelvic floor muscles (e.g., as a result of horse riding) may obstruct labor.

Kjell Salvesen, a professor in obstetrics and gynecology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and Siv Morkved, a physiotherapist at the university, identified 301 healthy pregnant women who had not given birth before. Half the women took part in an intensive pelvic floor muscle training program between the 20th and 36th week of pregnancy. The ...

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