Menopause is the beginning of the period of infertility in women and occurs gradually (it can last up to 10 years) between the ages of 45 and 55. The cessation of ovarian function leads to hormonal changes, in particular a drop in oestrogen. Hormonal changes due to menopause start several years before and can last up to several years after menopause. As a result of hormonal changes, the menopausal period is characterised by a number of joint and connective tissue problems.
60% of women experience low back pain during menopause, women can lose up to 25% of their bone density after menopause, and joint inflammation and joint swelling are more common. In late menopause, women experience accelerated muscle atrophy, which is manifested by a loss of skeletal muscle density and strength in the stabilising muscle groups that support the joints.
Low back pain in menopausal women is often severe and occurs repeatedly or persists for more than 12 weeks continuously. Lumbar pain is the leading cause of sickness absence in menopausal women. At Medicofit, we often treat sciatica, which accompanies spinal pain, with physiotherapy for menopause.
Specialised physiotherapy for menopause addresses the risk factors that are specific to this period of a woman’s life, in particular strengthening the core of the body, the hip stabilisers and the spine. For women with acute painful spinal conditions, we offer a holistic physiotherapy approach with TECAR therapy, LASER therapy and HiTOP high-tone electrostimulation for a biostimulating effect.
Increasing the load-bearing capacity of the spine and other joints is a priority in physiotherapy for menopause. Due to the loss of bone density and muscle strength, every woman needs to perform tailored strength exercises that include free weights. The Medicofit menopause programme also includes exercises to improve the pelvic floor muscles, which often lose strength with ageing and cause urinary incontinence.
As part of physiotherapy for stress urinary incontinence at Medicofit, we provide supervised pelvic floor muscle training using the biofeedback method (BFB), which involves modern devices with sensors to measure the activity of the pelvic floor muscles.
The conservative method of physiotherapy for pelvic floor muscle training involves only performing pelvic floor squeezing exercises with verbal instructions from the physiotherapist, such a method of pelvic floor muscle strengthening does not have a good performance in practice, unfortunately it is still often the only method of pelvic floor muscle strengthening in women’s physiotherapy and exercise providers.
At Medicofit, we are aware of the importance of using biofeedback in the treatment of urinary incontinence and weak pelvic floor muscles, as most women do not have good control over the activation of the deep pelvic floor muscles.
Using sensors to measure muscle activity, which are inserted into the vagina during the treatment, the physiotherapist obtains information on the activation, contraction strength, coordination, fatigue and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles.
Urinary incontinence often accompanies the menopausal period and should therefore include special physiotherapy with biofeedback training for the pelvic floor muscles. At Medicofit, menopausal urinary incontinence is treated as part of a 16-week special physiotherapy programme for women.
Back or spinal pain in menopausal women is associated with hormonal changes, loss of bone density and loss of muscle mass and strength. Typically, women with a history of chronic back problems are more likely to experience more severe acute low back pain in the menopause.
It is important for all women to undergo a specific diagnostic examination as soon as they suspect the onset of menopause in order to assess the risk of back pain and to develop an appropriate prevention programme.
If the menopause is associated with pre-existing low back pain that occasionally spreads to the buttocks or legs, physiotherapy should include an integrated instrumental approach in the form of LASER therapy, TECAR therapy, PERISO therapy and HITOP therapy.
Women will lose up to 30% of their spinal muscle strength during the menopausal period, so it is important that physiotherapy includes exercises to increase the strength of the extensors and flexors of the spine, as this is the only method to eliminate low back pain in the long term.
Physiotherapy for menopause at Medicofit includes a specialised approach for low back pain, stress urinary incontinence, pelvic floor muscles, joint pain and muscle strength.
