Incontinence impairs sexual pressure in women: Study

Articles: Incontinence impairs sexual pressure in women: Study

Posted by admin on Tuesday, May 11, 2004 - 07:03 AM

A study by researchers at The University of Pittsburgh has shown that women who experience overactive bladders are less likely to enjoy sexual activity.
Overactive bladder, a condition where the muscle surrounding the bladder contracts spastically causing frequent urination and incontinence, affects more than eight million women worldwide. An estimated 80 percent of these patients do not seek help or treatment for this condition. Overactive bladder is characterized by conditions like urinating more than eight times in a 24 hour period, a strong urge to urinate frequently and the inability to suppress urgency, resulting in the leaking or loss of urine. Results of this study will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association (AUA) in San Francisco, and published in abstract 342 in the AUA proceedings. The study was presented by Dr. Subodh Patel, who conducted the research on 78 women with overactive bladder by completing two questionnaires: one that evaluated the presence and degree of bother caused by their symptoms of overactive bladder and one that evaluated the patient's sexual function. By comparing answers on both questionnaires, the researchers found that women who expressed a higher degree of bother as a result of urge urinary incontinence were less likely to enjoy sexual activity. Those who experienced a significant amount of genital or abdominal pain were less likely to enjoy sexual activity, but were more likely to experience sexual thoughts or fantasies. "Overactive bladder is so prevalent, and, as shown by this study, its effects reach beyond the commonly thought of symptoms like incontinence to the inability to enjoy sexual activity," said Michael Chancellor, professor of gynecology and urology at the University of Pittsburgh. "There is still a stigma about talking to a doctor about overactive bladder. Women need to know that they don't have to accept the symptoms of overactive bladder and that there are treatments that can ease their symptoms," added Chancellor.

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