OBJECTIVE: Verify if abdominal strengthen has influence in pelvic floor muscles. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This work consisted on a clinical trial approach twenty-one nulliparous, with average ages of 21,7 years old, divided in two groups: A (n = 10) with perineal contraction orientation simultaneously to abdominal contraction and B (n = 11) with no perineal contraction orientation. The participants were submitted to a gynecological and abdominal assessment pre and post intervention through: pelvic floor functional evaluation, vaginal cones, perineometry, trunk anterior flexion test, inferiors members descent, force of oblique and abdominal endurance. The abdominal strength protocol contained three distinct exercises, associated or not to the pelvic floor contraction, with three series of ten repetitions and sixty seconds of interval, three times a week over a period of six weeks. The Student's t-test and the ANOVA were used for the statistical analysis. RESULTS: The comparison between initial and final values showed significant differences between the two groups in the assessment of the perineum, the test only with cones (p = 0.00) and perineometry (strength/pressure) (p = 0.03), indicating a worsening of the variables in group B. Already in abdominal evaluation, group A showed significant results in three trials (the inferiors members descent: p = 0.03, abdominal endurance: p = 0.03 and modified endurance: p = 0.00) compared to only one group B (addominal endurance: p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Suggest that the combination of abdominal strengthening exercises with perineal may boost the gain in strength and function of these muscle groups and the lack of association may impair the functionality of the pelvic floor.
Pelvic floor; Perineum; Physical examination; Abdominal muscles and physiotherapy
