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. 2023 Sep 21;10(4):540-548.
doi: 10.1016/j.ijnss.2023.09.005. eCollection 2023 Oct.

Sitting on the fence: A qualitative study of perceptions regarding pelvic floor muscle training among pregnant women with urinary incontinence

Ling Chen  1 , Sha Liu  1 , Danli Zhang  1 , Wenzhi Cai  1
Affiliations

Sitting on the fence: A qualitative study of perceptions regarding pelvic floor muscle training among pregnant women with urinary incontinence

Ling Chen et al. Int J Nurs Sci. .

Abstract

Objectives: To explore the perceptions of pregnant women with urinary incontinence toward pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT).

Methods: Semi-structured personal interviews were used to collect data. Pregnant women with urinary incontinence and no contraindications to PFMT were recruited for semi-structured interviews in the Outpatient Department of Obstetrics in a Class A tertiary hospital in Shenzhen from October to November 2021. Purposive sampling was performed, and Braun & Clarke thematic analysis was used for the data analysis.

Results: Sixteen pregnant women with urinary incontinence and a mean age of (30.81 ± 3.66) years participated in the interview. "Sitting on the fence" was the predominant theme acquired after analysis. Pregnant women had contradictory attitudes toward PFMT. A total of four themes and nine sub-themes have been extracted: "It is normal and does not really matter" (normalized urinary incontinence, insufficient attention to PFMT); "There is nothing I can do" (insufficient subjective motivations, limitation of objective conditions, lack of social support); "We have to take care of ourselves" (the increasing self-care awareness, emerging autonomous motivation to practice PFMT); "Training should be guaranteed" (requiring the guidance, suggestions, and surveillance of healthcare professionals; requiring the perceptive benefits).

Conclusions: This study reveals varying attitudes towards PFMT among pregnant women with urinary incontinence. To better promote pregnant women's engagement in PFMT, it is necessary to provide professional guidance, increase self-care awareness, improve social support, and emphasize the benefits of PFMT.

Keywords: Pelvic floor muscles training; Pregnant women; Qualitative research; Urinary incontinence.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared no conflict of interest.

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