1.3 – Attitudes towards incontinence
Urinary incontinence is one of the most important health problems confronting modern society
The statistics are quite astounding without taking into consideration those people with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), who with advice and treatment at this stage, may be able to prevent incontinence from developing.
Some astounding statistics
- In the UK, there are over 14 million people who have bladder control problems and 6.5 million with bowel control problems – this is approximately the number of people in the UK aged 60 and over!
- Approximately 10% of all adult women suffer from urinary incontinence[1].
- 0.4%–16% men are thought to have moderate to severe urinary incontinence. The number of affected men increases with age, and men aged 75 plus are most likely to experience bladder problems[2].
- Urinary incontinence affects 11% men and 20% women over age 60[3].That is 1 in every 5 older women and 1 in every 10 older men.
Lower urinary tract symptons (LUTS)
It is not just about incontinence or actual leakage. We also need to think about the ‘almost’ leaks and the people who get to the toilet ‘just in time’, because providing advice and treatment at this stage may prevent incontinence from developing.
Did you know? More people experience lower urinary tract symptoms, or LUTS, than urinary incontinence but most do not seek treatment because they believe their symptoms are a normal part of ageing or because they are too embarrassed.
LUTS are usually grouped as:
- Symptoms which affect storage of urine in the bladder, or
- Symptoms which affect the voiding of urine, or
- Symptoms that occur post-micturition, after the voiding has finished
Specific LUTS are associated with particular conditions.
What’s forecast for the future?
- In 2011 an increase of approximately 20% across the globe was predicted by 2018 for:
- Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (LUTS) – 2.3 billion report these
- Urinary Incontinence (UI) – 423 million report this
- Overactive Bladder (OAB) – 546 million report this
- By 2030 the greatest increase in demand for UI care will be in older women aged 60-89 with OAB. Urinary incontinence care demands will increase by 80%[4]
- Overall the ageing of the global population is the biggest influence on prevalence of UI.
- The oldest old, those over 80, are the fastest growing group In Europe. The oldest old have the most severe continence issues because they are also the most frail, with large numbers of risk factors and co-morbidities.
- The highest concentration of people living with bladder and bowel incontinence are those in care homes.
- A survey of 12,120 UK care home residents by BUPA in 2012 found
- 13% had UI only
- 2% had faecal incontinence (FI) only
- 56% had dual UI/FI (equivalent to 6,788 people)
Incontinence is associated with different diseases and medical conditions
Incontinence is associated with lots of different diseases and medical conditions. One example is stroke:
- UI affects 40-60% of people after a stroke. This is 60,000 – 90,000 people in the UK each year
- 44% stroke survivors report UI at 3 months, 38% at 12 months[5]
- The most common type of UI experienced following stroke is urge UI[6]
The questions below are designed to make you think about your own attitudes to incontinence.
There are no right or wrong answers but when considering your answers you should think about the person’s dignity and human rights as well as the needs and responsibilities of our wider society.
- If you were shopping and saw an individual who had soiled themselves would you stop to help them?
- Would you give someone a lift in your car if you knew they were likely to wet themselves?
- Would you challenge someone who walked away from a public toilet without washing their hands?
- If one of your friends was wearing clothing that had urine odour / smell would you talk to them about it?
- How would you feel if somebody made you sit on a toilet seat that was soiled?