February 2, 2018

"There is nothing sexual about it... There could be a backlash from this. But if people decide physical therapists should not do this work..."

"... a lot of women will suffer with pain and a markedly compromised quality of life," said physical therapist, Rhonda Kotarinos, quote in "Pelvic Massage Can Be Legitimate, but Not in Larry Nassar’s Hands" (NYT).
Some patients who come to a physical therapist will say they aren’t comfortable with transvaginal manipulation, and therapists say they utilize it only if the patient both understands what’s involved and freely consents....

Though many women develop pelvic problems after childbirth or later in life, [said Dr. Sangeeta Mahajan, an obstetrician-gynecologist and division chief for Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center], gymnasts are prone to pelvic floor problems because they land hard and slam on to the floor repeatedly. She said it was “not inconceivable” the therapy might be appropriate for them under certain circumstances..

“I use this every day in my own practice,” Dr. Mahajan said....
ADDED: Should little girls be training in an activity that involves slamming their pelvic region into the floor hard and repeatedly in a way that causes pelvic problems otherwise seen after childbirth or later in life? Not all abuse is sexual.

AND: I don’t think I should have written “into the floor.” “Slam on to the floor” most likely means that  the pelvic floor is slammed into equipment such as the uneven parallel bars and the balance beam.

30 comments:

Rob said...

". . . they land hard and and slam on the floor."

As in, she looks like she's been rode hard and put away wet.

mockturtle said...

Transvaginal manipulation? Are you shitting me?

Helenhightops said...

Pelvic floor PT absolutely can work. My stress incontinence got markedly better in 38 treatments. And I'd had bladder suspension recommended, and had also had hysterectomy recommended. But I needed neither procedure. I needed my hips strengthened so that I did not have to use my pelvic floor to help direct and stabilize my core. And I needed training to relax my pelvic floor so that when I needed to squeeze, those muscles were not already partially engaged in stabilizing the core. I'm an internist, and I recommend this therapy. It worked for me.

Leslie Graves said...

Several of the folks quoted in that article sound markedly whiny, and as if there is no good solution to the state that the field finds itself in, post-Nassar. There is a solution: Carefully and fully describe the procedure, what is entailed in it, the anticipated benefits, etc., etc.

Strongly agree with the point of the added comment.

Tina848 said...

The whole gymnastics training regime these girls undergo is questionable. From dieting, to delayed menses, stunted growth, and other physical issues. I do wonder how healthy international level, competitive gymnastics is for young girls? IS it too much training and too many injuries?

Etienne said...

Gymnastics is the new boxing.

It too must be banned, because the victims are the athletes.

Etienne said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Wince said...

Should little girls be training in an activity that involves slamming their pelvic region into the floor hard and repeatedly in a way that causes pelvic problems otherwise seen after childbirth or later in life?

"Stronger and harder than a bad girl's dream"?

Big Mike said...

Should little girls be training in an activity that involves slamming their pelvic region into the floor hard and repeatedly in a way that causes pelvic problems otherwise seen after childbirth or later in life?

No, but at the elite level where these girls compete you can’t prevent it. Lots of elite athletes push their bodies past the point where they should, sometimes causing permanent physical damage.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

"The therapy has been tested and found effective in several small studies and clinical trials published in peer-reviewed medical journals."

More can be said than that for veterinary acupuncture.

SCIENCE!!!!11!!!1!!!!

Etienne said...
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Birches said...

Thank you for posting this! I have asked this question and not received an answer. There does appear to be a legitimate treatment down there.

Jupiter said...

"Should little girls be training in an activity that involves slamming their pelvic region into the floor hard and repeatedly in a way that causes pelvic problems otherwise seen after childbirth or later in life?"

No.

SayAahh said...

Is it natural that the pelvic floor "therapist", if male, has an erection during the therapy as alleged in the Nassar trial?
Let alone no gloves; no nurse observer in the room; no accompanying parent; no lubricant.

mockturtle said...

My older daughter competed in gymnastics when she was in middle school. No 'vaginal manipulation' was involved, thank God.

Fernandinande said...

Etienne said...
Gymnastics is the new boxing.


"To me, boxing is like a ballet, except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other." -- JH

rhhardin said...

Behaviour in Private Places: Sustaining Definitions of Reality in Gynecological Examinations, by Joan P. Emerson

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1312385 (click on pdf)

is a famous sociology paper on moves to keep the definition of what's happening nonsexual.

William said...

It is said that the celibacy requirement for Catholic priests attracted some of the wrong kind of men. I think a field that requires transvaginal manipulation of young girls might be a magnet for the wrong sort of therapist.

Etienne said...
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JackOfClubs said...

"...slamming their pelvic region into the floor..."

This isn't exactly what the Dr is saying. They are not slamming their pelvic region into the floor. The pelvic floor is the series of muscles near the bottom of the pelvic region that supports the other organs. The girls are slamming this "pelvic floor" against various exercise equipment, the parallel bars, balance beams, etc.

This doesn't take away from your general point about young girls competing in gymnastics. My general take is that all athletics are attempts to produce super-human results from merely human bodies. This is inevitably going to have health costs but at least adults can make an informed decision. We generally expect parents and other responsible adults to provide guidance in the best interests of children, even if doing so comes at the expense of athletic achievement. However, I concede that it is -- you should pardon the expression -- a difficult balancing act.

JaimeRoberto said...

The girls are slamming this "pelvic floor" against various exercise equipment, the parallel bars, balance beams, etc.

I'm not sure you're right about this. My daughter does gymnastics 17+ hours a week, and the only time she is slamming against equipment is if she falls. However, I can believe that the pelvic area takes a beating during the tumbling routines, when the load is transferred through the legs.

madAsHell said...

slamming their pelvic region into the floor hard

Makes you question the motivations of everyone involved.

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

Gymnastics is ridiculous.

It's a sport more suited to apes and monkeys than humans. It has all the dignity of a Tricky Trapeze toy. The men who do it look like short, skinny bodybuilders. I suppose it generally attracts smaller men unsuited for more popular sports, and I guess they might as well do that, since they probably can't compete in other sports.

The females who are best at it, and I say females because they seem to be neither fully adult women nor girls, combine the qualities of masculine muscle, dwarfish size, and childlike lack of secondary sex characteristics, and approximate the physique of a chimp/Oompa Loompa hybrid, complete with voices straight out of the Lollipop Guild.

Say no to gymnastics!

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

I can imagine a woman agreeing to pelvic manipulation therapy, even requesting it, and later, after a vagina monologue, or maybe a vagina dialogue, deciding she was violated because she changed her mind. Or because Nasser.

Can doctors actually bar men from doing this work? Wouldn't that go against equal opportunity laws? Keep man in vaginal manipulation!

Danno said...

Usually it is the parents who strive to make their children world class athletes in order to gain fame and fortune. And this doesn't just apply to gymnastics.

Jose_K said...

Back in the times, gymnasts were grown up women ,Věra Čáslavská was 18 YO the first OG he attended , and 26 when she became the first big star of the sport.
Korbut was 17 beginning the new trend carried to the limit by Rmmania

Ann Althouse said...

“The girls are slamming this "pelvic floor" against various exercise equipment, the parallel bars, balance beams, etc.”

Yes, you are right. I did a correction.

It’s much easier to picture how the damage is done when you think of those uneven parallel bars.

Freeman Hunt said...

I dunno. If my kid is in a sport, and the coach says, "Sometimes kids get injured playing this sport in a way that a doctor fixes by fondling them," I think we're off to find a new sport.

robother said...

A question that occurred to me is what's a supposedly respectable institution like Michigan State doing with a Osteo Degree program (and related hospital)? Pelvic floor manipulations are probably not even the furthest limits on wacko procedures stemming from this 19th Century New Age medicine wagon.

mockturtle said...

I dunno. If my kid is in a sport, and the coach says, "Sometimes kids get injured playing this sport in a way that a doctor fixes by fondling them," I think we're off to find a new sport.

You and I both, Freeman! It's hard to believe anyone would be so gullible as to fall for such nonsense.