Urinary incontinence in women is a condition involving the involuntary leakage of urine. This condition is caused by the weakening of the pelvic floor muscles, also known as the Kegel muscle, that aid in controlling urination. Urinary incontinence may be caused by pregnancy and childbirth, menopause, long term physical exertion, neurological injury, birth defects, and obesity in women of all ages, but is most prevalent in women over 60 and in the months following pregnancy and child birth.
To combat urinary incontinence, Kegel muscle training and strengthening exercise methods have proven beneficial. These exercises serve to develop stronger reflexive contractions following a rise in intra-abdominal pressure. Kegel exercises have also been cited in strengthening pelvic floor muscles for easier pregnancy and childbirth, increasing pleasure during sexual activity, treating conditions such as vaginosis, and helping to prevent organ prolapse. However, it can be difficult to perform these exercises because they are challenging and easily done incorrectly. Moreover, there is no effective way to teach proper form, track a pelvic floor muscle contraction, measure exercise results and provide more advanced exercise levels upon improvement.
Several prior developments have been set forth to aid women with their Kegel exercises. Some involve electrical stimulation of the Kegel muscles, some involve inserting weighted objects in to the vaginal canal to force the Kegel muscles to contract to hold them in, and some require the user to use their hands to manually manipulate a device during exercises. A few devices provide air pressure gauges that measure muscle contraction strength and others assume a physical vibration can elicit muscle response.
While using some of these devices may be more effective than trying to perform Kegel exercises alone, they are inconvenient and complicated, while others might provide negative or harmful results. In light of the current developments, there still does not exist a good method for teaching a woman to do the exercise correctly and effectively, measuring and charting progress, customizing exercise programs to a single user, evaluating exercise results, or engaging the user to exercise for a significant amount of time.
Solutions have been long sought but prior developments have not taught or suggested any complete solutions, and solutions to these problems have long eluded those skilled in the art. Thus there remains a considerable need for devices and methods that can teach proper form, measure exercise results and enable more advanced exercise levels upon improvement.