Original Research

High prevalence of urinary incontinence and poor knowledge of pelvic floor exercises among women in a health district in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa

J.P. Madombwe, S.E. Knight
South African Journal of Physiotherapy | Vol 64, No 1 | a95 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajp.v64i1.95 | © 2008 J.P. Madombwe, S.E. Knight | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 06 January 2008 | Published: 07 January 2008

About the author(s)

J.P. Madombwe, School of Family and Public Health Medicine, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal
S.E. Knight, School of Family and Public Health Medicine, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal

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Abstract

Introduction: The purpose of the study was to determine the prevalence and health seeking behaviour of women with urinary incontinence andtheir knowledge of pelvic floor exercises, in a health district in KwaZulu-Natal.Methods: An observational cross-sectional study design was used. BetweenSeptember 2005 and November 2005, a questionnaire was administered to 99 womenaged 21 – 76 years at randomly selected from. Results: The study found that the prevalence of the urinary incontinence was 35% (95% Confidence Interval, 26 to 45).  The most common type of incontinencewas stress urinary incontinence, 63% (95% CI, 46 to 79).  Of the 99 women, 32%(95% CI, 23 to 42) had heard of pelvic floor muscle exercises, while only 18% (95%CI, 11 – 26) had actually carried out the intervention.  Of the 35 women with urinary incontinence, 26% had soughtprofessional help, the most common reason for seeking help being a worsening in condition.Conclusion: The prevalence of urinary incontinence in KwaZulu-Natal is high, knowledge of urinary incontinenceas a disease and its management, among both women and health service providers is poor.

Keywords

urinary incontinence; stress urinary incontinence; urge urinary incontinence; mixed urinary incontinence; prevalence; pelvic floor muscle exercises

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