The Impact of Radiofrequency on Pelvic Floor Distress, Restoration, and Sexual Function Among Women Suffering from Pelvic Floor Disorders

Background & Objective: Pelvic floor disorders (PFDs) are common devastating situations among women globally. The present study aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of radiofrequency (RF) on pelvic floor distress, restoration, and sexual function among women with PFDs. Materials & Methods: This pre-post intervention study was performed on forty-three women with PFDs, who referred to a teaching pelvic floor clinic. Patients underwent RF three times fortnightly. Women were examined at three time points of baseline, one month post-intervention, and in a three months follow-up. In addition, a biofeedback evaluation was performed by a physiotherapist at the first session and follow-up. All women were asked to complete the Female Sexual Function Index and Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory questionnaires at the first session and in follow-up assessments. Descriptive statistics, the paired samples t-test, and the Friedman test were used to analyze the data. Results: The mean and standard deviation of the age and gravidity of participants were 40.3±8.01 years and 2.65±1.3, respectively. We observed that 81.4% of women had a history of vaginal delivery. A significant improvement was found in the levator muscle tonicity by manual examination in the three-month follow-up (P<0.001). Moreover, maximal pelvic floor contraction measured by biofeedback improved (P=0.075). There were significant improvements in female sexual function and pelvic floor distress, including pelvic organ prolapse, colorectal-anal distress, and urinary distress after RF therapy (P<0.001). Conclusion: The findings of the current investigation showed that RF could be applied for pelvic floor restoration and is likely to improve sexual function and pelvic floor distress.