the Pelvic Pain Puzzle

Treating Pelvic Pain

Treating pelvic pain is a common, yet challenging area of practice. The contributing factors can be multiple and the presentation may seem like a complex puzzle. Patients are often embarrassed to speak about their symptoms meaning allied health has a unique opportunity to spend more time with the patient to develop the rapport and trust required for this intimate area.

In this course you will review the embryology, anatomy, physiology and common presentations of the pelvic region to help unravel the pelvic pain puzzle for your patients. Conditions covered include pudendal neuralgia and visceral pain such as dysmenorrhea and endometriosis.

Gain an up-to-date understanding of the normal function of the female pelvis and organs, how dysfunction presents clinically and learn the treatment models, and direct and indirect techniques that Liz uses in daily practice when treating pelvic pain presentations

The Pelvic Pain Puzzle CPD course will cover;

• Embryological review of the pelvis to understand normal functions such as walking, waste elimination and reproduction
• Normal sensory, motor and visceral function and the influence hormones have on the tissues of pelvis and perineum, including the skin
• Perineal functions and key clinical symptoms in the history to indicate when referral is required
• Pudendal neuralgia - managing musculoskeletal triggers; nerve glides; home care. Applicable to male and female patients
• Visceral pain (dysmenorrhea or endometriosis) - visceral hyperalgesia concept and how to manage with manual therapy, education and home care

Learning Objectives

• Recognise the key clinical signs and symptoms of endometriosis and pudendal neuralgia
• Confidently gain informed consent before treatment
• Apply conservative management models including manual therapy, pain education and home management for endometriosis and pudendal neuralgia
• Demonstrate manual techniques for treating pelvic pain
• Recognise when interventional management may be indicated and who to refer to
• Referral guidelines with tips for writing referral letters

Course Details

The Pelvic Pain Puzzle course is applicable to allied health manual therapy practitioners with an interst in treating pelvic pain. It has a strong practical focus and includes appropriate manual therapy techniques that you can immediately use with confidence in your practice. Internal techniques will not be demonstrated.

The course will run from 8:30AM to 4PM. Places are limited to 20 attendees. It includes morning and afternoon tea, printed course notes and an e-certificate of attendance for your CPD records. The course can be counted as 7 hours CPD.

This course follows on from Liz Howard’s popular Pain & Pregnancy course which teaches practitioners to effectively help women during pregnancy (pelvic girdle pain etc), prepare for labour and recover efficiently from delivery or caesarean section. In this course pelvic girdle pain will be reviewed but not addressed in depth.

About the Presenter

Advanced Pain Management Osteopath Liz Howard practices at the Women's Health & Research Institute of Australia, a specialist pelvic pain clinic in Sydney. She holds a Master of Science in Medicine (Pain Management) from USYD in 2013 and has over 25 years’ of experience as an osteopath, including pain education and as a clinical specialist in sacral neuromodulation.

Liz has more than 16 years’ of experience teaching at Australian universities and as a CPD provider. Her teaching experience ranges from course writing, presenting lectures and practicum in Undergraduate and Master’s Osteopathic programs (University of Western Sydney, Southern Cross University), clinical supervision of Osteopathic students (UWS, SCU, SportsMed Mumbai), to presentations at many professional associations including RANZCOG (Royal Australian & New Zealand College of Obstetrics & Gynaecology), AGES (Australasian Gynaecological Endoscopy & Surgery), NSANZ (Neuromodulation Society of Australia and New Zealand), Osteopathy Australia National Conference presentation, Pregnancy Massage Australia, Pelvic Floor Seminars, GP education evenings and international allied health events, most recently in Ireland, Sweden and New Zealand.

Find out more about Liz Howard's experience treating pelvic pain here.

Feedback

I thought the course was fantastic! Incredibly well presented, very concise and interactive, and left me feeling confident and enthusiastic about applying it to my practice.

Jane Edmondson

Liz is an inspiring and engaging presenter, she shares extensive clinical knowledge of pelvic and perineal pain by way of case studies and current evidence-based practice protocols. Liz relates current clinical application models for chronic pain seamlessly with familiar osteopathic principles. This course has helped me to develop my confidence in diagnosing and treating patients with pelvic and perineal pain in a way that is immediately transferable to my every day practice.

Bimbi Joy

Loved that it was not too overwhelming and built on lots of techniques we have all learnt! Best course I've been to in a while.

Rebecca Brugman

Liz was a knowledgeable and witty presenter. She explained her material and linked it to research which I appreciated. I liked that her techniques were functional based, often these are overlooked and aren't linked to research. I also like how she discussed how she problem solves in practice. I found the practical side really easy to integrate into practice and very relatable.

ANON

I loved the way the presentation flowed, it was easy to follow and had great info on the slides. I also loved the practical, Liz came around and gave great feedback. The snacks were also amazing. The pre-learning videos were incredibly helpful and the notes I took from it have been a great resource for me to refer back to.

Olivia

Liz. She's fabulous. Dynamic, relatable, knowledgeable, I could go on...

Amanda Viedma-Dodd