Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26072126›Full record

SynthesisInternational urogynecology journal2015

Does pelvic floor muscle training improve female sexual function? A systematic review.

Cristine Homsi Jorge Ferreira, Peter L Dwyer, Melissa Davidson, Alison De Souza, Julio Alvarez Ugarte, Helena C Frawley

Registry-linked trialOpen access · greenAbstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in International urogynecology journal, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06786091 (Late Side-effects After Cervical Cancer Treatment - Prevention and Treatment), which is not on this map. Cited by 31 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
31citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
5.4field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT06786091 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2025, after this paper: background citation

Late Side-effects After Cervical Cancer Treatment - Prevention and Treatment

TypeinterventionalSponsorSt. Olavs HospitalRan2025 to 2026Enrolled25ConditionsPelvic Floor Disorder, Female Pelvic Floor Dysfunction, Female Sexual Dysfunction, Female Urinary IncontinenceArmsPelvic floor muscle training rehabilitation
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

31 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 103 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Sexual Dysfunction in Women with Cancer: A Systematic Review of Longitudinal Studies.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Cristine Homsi Jorge FerreiraRibeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Av. Bandeirantes, 3900 Monte Alegre, 14049-900, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil. cristine@fmrp.usp.br.
Peter L DwyerDepartment of Urogynecology, Mercy Hospital for Women, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Melissa DavidsonRemarkable Physios, PO Box 2006, Wakatipu, 9349, New Zealand.
Alison De SouzaDepartment of Urogynaecology, Mercy Hospital for Women, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Julio Alvarez UgarteDepartment of Urogynecology, Hospital Padre Hurtado-Santiago-Chile, Mercy Hospital for Women (Fellowship/2012-2013), Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Helena C FrawleyCentre for Allied Health Research and Education, Cabrini Health, School of Allied Health La Trobe University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Mercy Hospital for Women · AUHospital Padre Hurtado · CLLa Trobe University · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introduction and hypothesisWe performed a review of the literature reporting on the effects of pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) on female sexual function (SF).

methodsPubmed (from 1946 to December 2014), Ovid Medline (from 1946 to December 2014), CINAHL (from 1937 to December 2014), PsycINFO (from 1805 to December 2014), Scopus and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched by two independent reviewers. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the impact of PFMT on women's SF published in English were included. Methodological quality was scored using the PEDro scale. Data were analysed qualitatively and interpreted.

resultsA total of 1341 women were included in the eight RCTs covered by this review. The studies were published between 1997 and 2014. Methodological scores were between 4 and 7. The sample included derived from heterogeneous populations of women. In only one study was SF the primary outcome measure. Pelvic floor dysfunction was an inclusion criterion in the majority of studies. Most studies reported a significant improvement in SF score after PFMT between control and intervention groups.

conclusionsAlthough most studies indicated an improvement of at least one sexual variable in women with pelvic floor dysfunction, and one study demonstrated an improvement in SF in postpartum women selected independently of their continence status, the results need to be interpreted with caution. High-quality RCTs specifically designed to investigate the impact of PFMT on women's SF are required.

Indexed as

Exercise TherapyPelvic FloorSexual BehaviorFemaleHumansFemalePelvic floor muscle trainingPhysiotherapySexual function

Identifiers

PMID26072126
OpenAlexW609366790

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.