Many women suffer from abdominal diastasis after their pregnancy. How to recognize it? Should we favor physiotherapy or surgery? Here's everything you need to know.
Abdominal diastase (or diastasis of the great rights) is a disorder massively experienced by women after childbirth (30% suffer from it, often unconsciously). Normal phenomenon during pregnancy, it usually resolves during the postpartum period, four to five months after baby is born. However, some women may continue to have swollen stomachs and protruding abdominal muscles even after this time.
While in some cases it is only an aesthetic problem, in others it can lead to complications and become a real pathology. What are the symptoms and treatments for abdominal diastasis and how to prevent it?
Postpartum abdominal diastasis: what is it and what causes it?
The abdominal diastase corresponds to a longitudinal separation or separation of the two parts that make up the main muscle of the abdominal wall, called "rectus of the abdomen". These two parts move away from each other due to pressure from the uterus that gets bigger during pregnancy. On the line that separates them (the "dawn line"), a real hole is created.
The causes of abdominal diastasis are actually not yet entirely clear. It seems that in addition to the growth of the uterus, other factors are involved, such as a hereditary predisposition, the advanced age of women or a very heavy fetus (or twin).
Excessive exercise during the last trimester of pregnancy could also lead to other contraindications. As a reminder, to keep yourself in shape, always follow a training program specially designed for pregnant women.
What are the symptoms of postpartum abdominal diastasis?
As the belly expands – despite its resistance – it inevitably loses its elasticity and struggles to return to its previous state. He needs between 4 and 5 months to return to normal and so that the hole created by the two muscle areas, a size of a few centimeters, disappears.
If the hole does not disappear during this time, the diastasis of the rectum then becomes, at first, an aesthetic problem. It can then worsen and cause other disorders such as abdominal and back pain, low back pain, incontinence, nausea and even breathing difficulties and digestive. In some situations, diastasis can also cause the formation of epigastric or abdominal hernias.
In the most severe cases, when the two muscle groups reach a distance of more thane 6 centimeters for example, it can be dangerous for the stomach and intestine.
Abdominal diastasis: how to recognize it?
The diagnosis of abdominal diastasis is not always so simple. It is sometimes confused with other symptoms.
To do so, you must stay alert to your belly. If it remains swollen, your navel protrudes, even 5 or 6 months after giving birth, it is likely that it is an abdominal diastase.
Another sign may be the formation of the "fin" at the dawn line, which is clearly visible if you try to perform an abdominal flexion lying on your back (crunch).
Finally, you can calculate the distance between the two muscle bands yourself spaced by inserting your fingers into the groove of your belly and measuring their size.
Do not hesitate to consult your doctor for an ultrasound or MRI, which are the only means of obtaining final confirmation.
Treatments for abdominal diastasis: exercise and physiotherapy or surgery?
There are special exercises to treat abdominal diastases, in addition to common postpartum fitness exercises. A consultation with a physiotherapist is recommended, which will guide you and help you find your line and especially your health.
If, on the other hand, the diastase has reached a more advanced stage, you will have to undergo a surgical intervention. It's about a abdominoplasty, an operation to reconstruct the abdominal wall, to reduce the distance between the two muscle bands. This operation will only leave you with a scar similar to that of a cesarean.