Submitted by Comstock Physical Therapy
Who knew? The obtruator internus, a hip and pelvic floor muscle, supports the pelvic organs from below. Ideally the pelvic floor muscles will lift the pelvic organs, but another muscle supports the pelvic organs, too. The obtruator internus (OI) is a supporting pelvic floor muscle as well as a hip stability muscle.
To see this illustrated, look at the MRI of a bladder. The bladder is the balloon looking object in the middle of the picture. You can see the hip joints clearly in the image as well. The OI wings are the obtruator internus muscle underneath the bladder, helping to lift it. This particular MRI is of a man, but the obtruator internus muscle is arranged the same way in a women.
Interestingly, the obtruator internus muscle is very important for preventing knee pain as well as preventing plantarfascia. “Why?” See how the obtruator muscle wraps around the sit bone and attaches to the hip? It turns the hip and thigh out, which helps prevent the knee from rolling in (which causes kneecap pain) and the foot from also pronating.
The obtruator internus stops that movement AND helps the bladder, knee, and hip pain. If you have bladder prolapse, knee pain, hip pain, or all three, come to Comstock Physical Therapy to be evaluated by a therapist to get the help you need.
165 Lilly Rd. N., Suite B
Olympia, Washington 98506
360-455-8014
