Plymouth Pelvic Floor Unit

Plymouth Pelvic Floor Unit (PPFU)

Plymouth pelvic Floor Unit Logo

The Plymouth Pelvic Floor team provides specialist services for patients with pelvic floor problems, specifically the large bowel, and who live in Plymouth and beyond.

We are located at Derriford Hospital and aim to provide a clinically excellent service. We are a small team of four which includes two Pelvic Floor Consultants, a Nurse Specialist and Physio Specialist and you may be seen by several members of the team. The treatment of our patients is often discussed at multidisciplinary meetings with our uro-gynaecology and urology colleagues, especially where surgery may be required.

Pelvic Floor problems are common in men and women of all ages. Symptoms include bowel leakage or faecal incontinence, constipation, difficulty with rectal emptying and rectal prolapse. These are embarrassing conditions and people are often reluctant to seek help. We offer a full range of treatments which almost always start with conservative or non-operation measures, in accordance with National Guidelines. Conservative measures include looking at your diet, medication and lifestyle, issues which may affect your bowel. Appropriate investigations may be performed to assess the cause and severity of your pelvic floor condition.

Patients may be seen by our specialist Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist for further advice and treatment. In some circumstances surgery may be an option, but this is often after exhausting all other options and not undertaken unless necessary.

You can find more information on our patient leaflets.

You can download our lealfet on Pelvic Floor Relaxation here.

Help improve women’s pelvic health around pregnancy and birth.

Multidisciplinary Team Members:

Ann Cornelius