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PREGNANCY AND PUBIC PAIN
It is not uncommon for women to experience musculoskeletal pain during pregnancy – relating to postural changes, increased weight and hormonal effects. Pain is typically experienced in the lower back, pelvis and pubic area – commonly caused Pelvic Girdle Pain or Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction (SPD/PSD). At the Caldecotte Lake Acupuncture and Chiropractic Clinic this condition is seen frequently so you are in expert hands.
What is Pelvic Pain / Symphysis Pubis Pain?
PGP orPSD SPD is a condition which causes pain in one or more joints of the pelvis and can result in difficulty walking. It is most commonly associated with pregnancy, but can also occur in women who are not pregnant and I have seen it even in men.
What are the symptoms of PSD?SPD, PGP?
Pain can start at any point through the pregnancy, and can range from an uncomfortable throb in the groin to severe pain and difficulty walking.
Symptoms can include:
Pubic Pain
Pubic tenderness to the touch (and having the fundal height of the foetus measured may therefore be uncomfortable)
Lower back pain, especially in the sacro-iliac area
Difficulty/pain when turning over in bed
Difficulty/pain with going up or downstairs, getting in and out of cars, sitting down or getting up, putting on clothes, bending, lifting, standing on one foot, lifting heavy objects, etc.
Difficulty/pain on separating your legs
Sciatica type symptoms (pain in buttocks and down the leg)
“Clicking” in the pelvis when walking
Waddling gait
Difficulty getting started walking, especially after sleep.
Feeling like your hip is out of place or has to pop into place before walking.
Bladder dysfunction (temporary incontinence at change in position).
Knee pain or pain in other areas can sometimes also be a side-effect of pelvis problems.
Tightness in the upper back
The pain is often much worse at night and can stop you getting much sleep. Getting up to go to the toilet in the middle of the night can be especially painful.
What causes Pelvic Girdle Pain / Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction?
No one knows the exact cause but a number of different factors have been identified which include:
Differences in movement between the joints of the pelvis particularly the sacro iliac joints at the back of the pelvis can be associated with pain.
Previous injury or restriction prior to pregnancy (which may not have caused pain or discomfort prior to pregnancy).
In pregnancy there is an increase in the amount of the hormone Relaxin which causes softening of the ligaments throughout the whole body. As a result, the muscles around the lower back and pelvis have to work harder to support the body – and in some cases these muscles overwork resulting in pain.
Postural changes occurring in pregnancy due to the growing size and weight of the baby
The pelvic floor muscles which normally support the pelvis not working as effectively as normal because of the weight of the baby sitting on the pelvic floor.
The abdominal muscles and the rib cage being stretched by the growing baby
Why do some people get pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy and not others?
There is no clear answer as to why some women develop pelvic girdle pain and others don’t. It was traditionally thought that it was purely the pregnancy hormones especially Relaxin that were the cause of PGP/SPD. More recently other factors, such as differences in the way that the sacro iliac joints at the back of the pelvis move and differences in the way that the muscles are controlled have been shown to be important. Women who have previously had either pain in their lower back, an injury to their pelvis or pelvic girdle pain in a previous pregnancy are more likely to experience pain in subsequent pregnancies.