Effect of Pilates exercises on blood glucose, urinary problems, sexual symptoms, pain and anxiety in women with gestational diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Purpose. To verify the impact of Pilates training on blood glucose, urinary problems, sexual symptoms, pain and anxiety in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Methods. Overall, 25 pregnant women with GDM were randomly divided into an experimental and a control group. The participants allocated into the experimental group were submitted to 12 weeks of conventional treatment for GDM associated with supervised Pilates exercises. The control group were submitted to 12 weeks of conventional treatment, without the Pilates intervention. Fasting blood glucose was measured with a glucose monitor. Urinary symptoms were assessed by using the Short-Form International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire. For sexual function, the authors applied the Female Sexual Function Index. Maternal weight gain was obtained from the patients’ medical records. Pain was assessed by visual analogue scale and localized by nordic questionnaire. Owing to a non-parametric pattern of the data, values were expressed as median and interquartile range. Inferential analysis was performed with the Mann-Whitney U test (to assess between-group comparisons) and Wilcoxon test (to assess pre- and post-intervention comparisons). Results. Considering the baseline similarity of the groups regarding anthropometric and clinical variables, Pilates training improved fasting glucose, maternal weight gain, and urinary incontinence score as compared with the group submitted exclusively to conventional therapy (p < 0.05). Conclusions. The results reinforce the beneficial effects of supervised Pilates training on reducing blood glucose, maternal weight gain, and urinary incontinence in pregnant women with GDM.