Two issues that commonly cause pelvic pain

Many people may think that the pelvis is the bony structure found between the stomach and the legs. However, medical professionals tend to view the pelvis as all of the structures in this area, including many muscles and organs. Accordingly, pelvic pain can be related to many more issues than a break in the pelvic girdle. Two issues in particular commonly cause pelvic pain. 

1. Pelvic inflammatory disease

One common cause of pelvic pain in women is a condition called pelvic inflammatory disease. This condition is the result of a bacterial infection in the organs of the pelvis, and it commonly affects organs like the uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries. Pelvic inflammatory disease can also cause women to develop chronic or long-term pelvic pain. The chronic pain is the result of scar tissue that develops in the organs infected by this disease. 

Aside from pelvic pain, pelvic inflammatory disease can also lead to other symptoms. One of these symptoms is a worsening of the woman’s menstrual cramps, and women with this condition could also experience pain when urinating. Also, it’s common to have nausea, fever and fatigue if you’re dealing with pelvic inflammatory disease. 

2. Levator ani syndrome

Another cause of pelvic pain that can affect both women and men is known as levator ani syndrome. The source of levator ani syndrome is overly tight pelvic floor muscles. The pelvic floor muscles stretch like a hammock across the bottom of the pelvis, and they’re responsible for supporting organs like the bladder, urethra, vagina and rectum. 

The inability to relax the pelvic muscles means the main symptom of levator ani syndrome is typically pelvic pain. However, this condition can also lead to several other troublesome symptoms. Two issues that levator ani syndrome can cause are pain in the lower back and constipation. Urinary incontinence is also a common symptom of levator ani syndrome. People with this condition also report feeling bloated and more frequent urges to urinate. 

Advent Physical Therapy is here to help treat the cause of your pelvic pain

Residents of West Michigan don’t have to go far to find treatment for pelvic pain. You can find effective physical therapy for many pelvic issues at the 14 Advent Physical Therapy clinics in your area. Our team offers free screenings that can be used to pinpoint the cause of your pelvic pain. After your screening, we can build you an individualized treatment plan for your condition. This plan will contain several beneficial therapy techniques, and some of these techniques may include: 

• Manual therapy
• Therapeutic exercises
• McKenzie Method^®
• Dry needling

Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment to begin treating your pelvic pain.