Faculty: Jennifer Stone

Session Details:

Welcome Conference

Faculty: Jessica Reale

Session Details:

Intrarectal balloon biofeedback training has been recommended by multiple recent clinical practice guidelines as an evidence-based treatment for individuals with bowel dysfunction, including functional constipation and fecal incontinence. Despite these recommendations, this treatment technique is often underutilized in clinical practice. This presentation will explore the physiological basis for intrarectal balloon training, provide an overview of recent research, and offer recommendations for implementation in clinical practice.

Objectives:

Following this presentation, participants will:

Describe rectoanal anatomy and the physiology of defecation.

Identify appropriate candidates for intrarectal balloon biofeedback for retraining rectal sensation in pelvic health rehabilitation practice.

Identify the key components for successful intrarectal balloon biofeedback training in clinical practice.

Describe the clinical evidence supporting the use of intrarectal balloon biofeedback training in a comprehensive pelvic health rehabilitation program.

Faculty: Sarah Duvall

Session Details:

Prolapse is a diagnosis that has many individuals giving up exercises they love. Learn how to use purposeful exercise to increase pressure tolerance and improve prolapse. Take a look at exercises to target specific prolapses, as well as progressions for higher-level exercises like squatting, running, and Olympic lifting.

Faculty: Grace Felton

Session Details:

With 10% of children over 5 years old dealing with daytime urinary leakage and nearly 5% of pediatric doctor’s visits occurring for constipation, there is no denying pelvic floor physical therapy needs to have a role in managing pediatric bladder and bowel health. In order to provide the best care possible to these children, it is imperative to understand what other characteristics may present in these patients. Bowel and bladder disorders are quite common in the neurodivergent for a myriad of reasons. These reasons, as well as strategies to identify and manage bowel and bladder conditions in the neurodivergent population, will all be discussed in this lecture.

Objectives:

• List the reasons why bowel and bladder dysfunction is common in the neurodivergent population
• Define interoception and how this relates to bowel and bladder dysfunction in the neurodivergent population
• Recognize common signs of bowel and bladder dysfunction in the neurodivergent population
• Understand clinical strategies to create a more conducive and productive clinical experience for neurodivergent children
• Describe 3-5 subjective findings that indicate the presence of pediatric bowel and bladder dysfunction
• Describe 3-5 interventions that can be used to begin to treat pediatric bowel and bladder dysfunction

Faculty: Michelle Lyons

Session Details:

There have been some incredible advances in both cancer treatment & cancer survivorship in the past decade. However, the effects of cancer treatment on female pelvic health, while documented in the literature, are not always on the oncology team’s radar. Challenges to bladder, bowel, sexual health and ongoing pelvic pain, are not only prevalent after cancers affecting the breast, but can be especially common in pelvic cancers, including colorectal, gynae, and bladder cancer.

Despite a growing body of evidence to support pelvic rehab as a central part of oncology rehab, awareness has not kept pace with the research but there is a tremendous amount that pelvic rehab therapists can offer cancer survivors to improve continence, regain sexual health and return to exercise.

This presentation will signpost you to evidence to support our role, as well as giving you some clinical pearls to take back to the clinic, so you can help survivors thrive during and after their cancer treatment.

Faculty: Jennifer Stone, Megan Oberg

Session Details:

It is common for postpartum individuals to experience pelvic floor dysfunction during their recovery from childbirth, and the topic of whether and how to carry their child(ren) can be a challenging one. In this session, speakers will give an overview of types of carriers, troubleshooting for carrier fit, and how to help caregivers with pelvic floor dysfunction find a method of child wearing that will enhance their recovery process.

Faculty: Heather Edwards

Session Details:

As pelvic therapists, we know that there are biological, psychological, and social aspects to pelvic pain and we might even have strategies of how to address these past our medically based treatment. When sexual function is involved, though, sometimes addressing the psychosocial aspects of care can suddenly feel “not our lane”. In this talk, we’ll discuss how the psychosocial aspects of sexual health have components that absolutely are appropriate to address as medical providers and discuss how that “lane” is actually defined. We’ll also talk about the power of the erotic (and no, this doesn’t mean pornographic) on how to guide pelvic pain clients on the way to recovery and feeling like an active participant in their lives… especially when it comes to relationships.

Objectives:

By the end of this talk, participants will be able to:

• Use a functional breakdown of biopsychosocial history taking as it relates to sexual dysfunction with clients in the clinic.
• Differentiate between the role of sex counseling (which is a term for what medical providers do when advising on sexual health) and sex therapy (which is a mental health licensed practice).
• Name one way in which they can include elements of accessing the erotic in treatment plans with pelvic pain patient with sexual limitations.

Faculty: Susan Dunn

Session Details:

This session will cover the role of physical therapy in treating the sequelae of penile trauma. Specific diagnoses addressed will include hard flaccid syndrome, Peyronie’s Disease due to a buckling injury, sports related trauma, and surgical trauma.

Faculty: Heidi Moyer

Session Details:

Bone mineral density issues can impact a variety of populations including people experiencing menopause, individuals following cancer treatment, or as a result of pathologic aging. This presentation will engage leaners with evidence-based and evidence-informed interventions to promote bone density and functional performance in individual with low bone mineral density. Armed with the knowledge of diet/nutrition, resistance training, and impact training, learners will be able to better manage the complex needs of this growing issue.

Objectives:

After this presentation, the learner will be able to:

• Interpret precautions and contraindications for exercise in individuals with low bone mineral density
• Describe the role of various healthcare providers in diet/nutrition management with low bone mineral density
• Implement an evidence-based exercise program including resistance and impact training within an individual with low bone mineral density

Faculty: Teresa Schuemann

Session Details:

This session will address retraining runners across the management spectrum with movement screening specific to running, evaluating and exercise prescription for return to running including addressing related issues such as urinary incontinence.

Objectives:

• Employ evidence-informed movement screening processes to identify injury risk.
• Analyze the sports biomechanics of running.
• Prescribe evidence-informed management strategies to return an athlete to running optimally and with no urinary incontinence.

Faculty: Nadia Archambault

Session Details:

Part 1: Medications used to treat low libido in women

Part 2: Hormone Replacement Therapy for Female Patients

Part 3: Hormone Therapy in the Transgender Community

Objectives:

The overall purpose of this activity is to enable the learner to:

• Identify medications used to treat low libido in female patients
• Learn the types of hormone replacement therapy in female patients
• Understand medication therapy for patients undergoing gender transition

Part 1- Medications used to treat low libido in the female patient population

1. Review of medications including potential side effects and contraindications

2. Guidance on discussing low libido with female patients

3. Overview of applicable studies

Part 2- Hormone Replacement Therapy for Female Patients

1. Learn the types of hormone replacement therapy in female patients

2. Identify side effects of hormone replacement therapy

3. Be able to have successful conversations with female patients regarding their hormone replacement therapy

Part 3- Hormone therapy for gender transition

1. Review of hormonal therapy and hormone blockers

2. Overview of applicable studies

3. Talking points with patients in the transgender community

4. Resources for healthcare professionals