Introduction. Urinary incontinence (UI) is a health problem affecting the quality of women’s lives (QOL) at various life stages. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) can be caused by previous vaginal deliveries and is especially likely to occur in the perimenopausal period. The most commonly recommended first-choice treatment methods involve exercises for the pelvic floor muscles (PFM). The aim of this study was to assess the impact of isolated PFM exercises and combined training of the PFM and the m.transversus abdominis (TrA) muscle on the QoL of patients with SUI with regard to the number of vaginal deliveries.Material and Methods. 137 women with SUI were qualified for analysis (mean age 53,1 ± 5,5). To assess the effectiveness of PFM training QOL questionnaire was used (ICIQ-LUTS qol). PFM training for groups A (PFM+TrA) and B (PFM) was intended for 12 weeks. Statistica v. 12.0 PL, StatSoft, USA, was used for statistical calculations.Results. The analysis demonstrated that conservative treatment based on the A training program (PFM + TrA) yielded statistically significantly better results than the B program (PFM), with the improvement observed in such QoL domains as the performance of household duties, physical activity and travelling, social limitations, emotions, sleep problems and fatigue, the frequency of changing panty liners, fluid intake control, and embarrassment.Conclusion. Both the combined training of the PFM and the synergistic (TrA) muscle and the isolated PFM exercises improve the QoL of women with SUI. Nonetheless, the combined PFM and TrA muscle physiotherapy is more effective. The exercises for the PFM and the synergistic muscle give better results in women who have given birth fewer than three times than isolated PFM exercises.

Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) influences quality of life in female patients. In this study, we used ICIQ LUTS QoL (The International Consultation Incontinence Questionnaire Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms quality of life) to determine the quality of life (QoL) in various domains in patients with stage 1 SUI. The study included 140 perimenopausal women subjected to urodynamic tests at the Department of Gynaecology, Endocrinology and Gynaecologic Oncology, Pomeranian Medical University, Police (Poland) in 2013–2015. The study subjects were divided into two groups, A and B. Each patient completed two questionnaires, an original survey developed by the authors and the validated ICIQ LUTS QoL. Two exercise programs, each lasting for 3 months and consisting of 4 weekly sessions, were recommended to the study subjects. The program for Group A included exercises for pelvic floor muscles (PFM) with simultaneous tension of the transverse abdominal muscle (TrA), and the program for Group B, PFM exercises without TrA tension. After completing the exercise programs, patients with stage 1 SUI, both from Group A and from Group B, showed a significant improvement in most QoL domains measured with ICIQ LUTS QoL. However, more beneficial effects of the training were observed in the group subjected to PFM exercises with TrA tension.

Background: Chronic pelvic pain affects approximately 15% of reproductive age women. It is mainly caused by adhesions (20–40%). Despite CPP being the main symptom of endometriosis, the disease is confirmed by laparoscopy only in 12–18% of cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the results of laparoscopy in women with CCP and to assess the sensitivity and specificity of elements of an interview and clinical examination. Materials and methods: The study included 148 women with CPP. Each patient underwent laparoscopy. In laparoscopy, the presence of endometriosis and/or peritoneal adhesions was confirmed. Then, the sensitivity and specificity and the positive and negative predictive value of endometriosis symptoms or abnormalities in the gynecological examination were statistically calculated. Results: After previous surgery, adhesions were found in almost half (47%) of patients. In patients without a history of surgery, adhesions were diagnosed in 6.34% of patients. Endometriosis without coexisting adhesions was more often diagnosed in women without previous surgery (34.9%), compared to 10.58% in the group with a history of surgery (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Intraperitoneal adhesions are most common in women after pelvic surgery and with chronic ailments. The best results for sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value in the diagnosis of endometriosis are found in women with irregular menstruations during which the pain increases. Laparoscopy still remains the primary diagnostic and therapeutic method for these women.

Background: The psychological features of the body image and the role of perceived social support for women with diastasis recti abdominis (DRAM) is significant for the treatment of this group of patients, but it is difficult to identify research on this topic. We aimed to search for similarities and differences between postpartum women with DRAM in terms of their psychological features of the body image and perceived social support from the partner, family and friends.Methods: Three hundred forty-five Polish women with DRAM were asked to fill the The Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire (MBSRQ), The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and The Drawing Self-Assessment Sheet. Data analysis included the stepwise regression analysis and k-cluster analysis.Results: We identified several predictors in the group of women with DRAM. Social support of partner, family, and friends are the predictors of self-assessment of general body appearance. Social support of family is a predictor of self-assessment of the health of the body. Social support of friends is a predictor of self-esteem of weight and fear of gaining weight. Moreover, three clusters of women with DRAM were found. Type 1—women with DRAM with one child and low self-esteem of the general appearance of the body, low self-esteem of health condition of the body, high self-esteem of weight, and fear of weight gain, and low level of social support; Type 2—women with DRAM with three or more children and low self-esteem of the general appearance of the body, low self-esteem of health condition of the body, high self-esteem of weight and fear of weight gain, and high level of social support; and Type 3—women with DRAM with two children and high self-esteem for the general appearance of the body, high level of self-esteem for health of the body, low self-esteem of weight and fear of weight gain, and high levels of social support.Conclusions: Social support is a predictor of body image in women with DRAM, but there are other factors that influence body acceptance more in this group of women. Furthermore the three clusters featured in the study may help in treating women with DRAM.

Wstęp: Coaching i mentoring to formy rozwoju osobistego i zawodowego, których zastosowanie pozwala m.in. na zmianę wizerunku współczesnego pielęgniarstwa oraz może sprzyjać skutecznej promocji. Tym samym umożliwia liderom wprowadzanie nowych rozwiązań mogących zapewnić satysfakcję z wykonywanej pracy oraz sprzyjać rozwojowi pielęgniarstwa. Celem pracy była ocena poziomu wiedzy personelu pielęgniarskiego na temat coachingu i mentoringu. Materiały i metody: W badaniu udział wzięło 256 aktywnych zawodowo pielęgniarek zatrudnionych w różnie sprofilowanych oddziałach Samodzielnego Publicznego Szpitala Klinicznego nr 2 Pomorskiego Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Szczecinie. Jako metodę zastosowano sondaż diagnostyczny z wykorzystaniem autorskiego kwestionariusza ankiety składającego się z 29 pytań. Wyniki: Wśród personelu pielęgniarskiego 43,5% ogółu nie zna definicji coachingu. W pytaniach dotyczących mentoringu 30,5% badanych wskazało poprawną definicję, natomiast 32,5% wybrało nieprawidłową odpowiedź pomimo deklarowania jej znajomości. Wnioski: Wiedza w środowisku pielęgniarskim na temat coachingu i mentoringu jako formach rozwoju osobistego jest znikoma. Mentoring jest pojęciem bardziej znanym i rozumianym. To, przy przewidywanych korzyściach, wskazuje na konieczność podjęcia systematycznego szkolenia kadry pielęgniarskiej w tym zakresie.

Aims. The aim of the study was to analyze the influence gymnastics has on the quality of life (QOL) in women with grade 1 stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and to determine the relationship between the outcome and selected body weight indices: body mass index (BMI) and waist‐to‐hip ratio (WHR). Methods. A randomized study of 140 women (45‐60 years) with grade 1 SUI. The subjects were randomly assigned to a 3‐month training for pelvic floor muscles and a transverse abdominal muscle (PFM + TrA, n = 70) or PFM alone (n = 70). The QOL was determined with the questionnaire International Consultation on Incontinence Modular Questionnaire–Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Quality of Life (ICIQ LUTS QOL), before and after the program. Results. Women with BMI < 30 kg/m² benefited more from the PFM + TrA program with respect to physical limitations and embarrassment domains, whereas patients with a gynoid body type (WHR < 0.8) benefited more in terms of physical and social limitations, SUI‐evoked emotions, severity measures, and embarrassment domains. Conclusions. After the PFM + TrA training, women with WHR < 0.8 had a better QOL than those with WHR > 0.8.