Effects of Kegel, Central, and Combined Stability Exercises on the Central Muscle Endurance and Quality of Life of Primiparous Women after Episiotomy

Physical activities based on combined exercises, central stability, and Kegel exercises are simple, cost-efficient methods to effectively improve the postpartum quality of life in primiparous women. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of Kegel, central, and combined stability exercises on the central muscle endurance and quality of life of primiparous women after episiotomy.
This clinical trial was conducted on 36 primiparous women in Najafabad city, Iran in 2016. Subjects were randomly divided into three groups of Kegel exercises, central stability training, and combined exercises. Subjects in each group performed the training program for six weeks (three sessions per week). The studied variables included trunk muscle endurance and quality of life, which were measured before and after the intervention. In addition, the SF-36 questionnaire was used to assess the health-related quality of life in the subjects. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 21 using Lone test, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and analysis of variance, and P-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Combined exercises had the most significant effect on all the measured indices. Moreover, the effect of combined exercises on central muscle endurance was significantly higher compared to the Kegel and central stability exercises (P>0.05). However, no significant associations were observed between the training programs and quality of life, and there were no significant differences between the three methods in this regard (P According to the results, combined exercises had the greatest impact on improving muscle endurance, followed by central stability exercises, which had a significant effect on central muscle endurance. However, no significant differences were observed between the three exercise modes in terms of the quality of life.