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Over the last 5 years, the National Association For Continence has sponsored epidemiologic surveys of adults across the United States in order to quantify the prevalence of bladder control problems in the community, to understand how quality of life of those people experiencing these medical disorders is affected, and what beliefs people in general hold surrounding bladder health. Collectively, these nationwide surveys offer statistically significant documentation of how widespread, how far-reaching, how misunderstood, and how real the symptoms of urinary incontinence and related symptoms of overactive bladder are, and lay a foundation to support future investment in research, education, and collaboration.
Over the last 5 years, the National Association For Continence (NAFC) has sponsored epidemiologic surveys of adults across the United States in order to quantify the prevalence of bladder control problems in the community, to understand how quality of life of those people experiencing these medical disorders is affected, and what beliefs people in general hold surrounding bladder health. While key statistics from each of these studies have been shared with the media in interviews, news releases, and briefings, no single published report has attempted to capture highlights of these substantial pieces of consumer research. Such is the objective of this article.
Each project was funded by a single company either marketing or developing a product for treating or managing urinary incontinence (UI). In every project, NAFC was involved deeply in the formation of questions, the scope of questions asked, and in analysis and interpretation of findings. The surveys were fielded or conducted by nationally recognized research firms specializing in such demographic research.
Two of the studies looked at bladder control issues without focus on a single diagnostic category, while another surveyed only women about overactive bladder symptoms. A fourth looked in-depth at stress UI among women of all ages. All individuals who were interviewed lived independently in the community, as opposed to institutional settings. It is by these three groupings that results of the research are discussed here.
General Bladder Control Issues
During the fourth quarter 2000, 1,001 adults ages 30 to 70 were interviewed in retail malls. Twenty major cities were represented. Weighted by age and gender to reflect national census data, the responses were statistically significant within +/- 3%. The...