World Continence Week – women urged to seek help to laugh without leaking

MEDIA RELEASE | 20 June 2018

Urinary incontinence can affect anyone, at any age, of any gender. There are many causes, such as an overactive bladder, or a weak pelvic floor, or both. Stress urinary incontinence (leakages occurring with laughing or activities) is the most common type of urinary incontinence, affecting up to 53% of females. It is therefore the focus of this year's World Continence Week.

However, over the past 5 years, surgery for stress incontinence in women appears to be decreasing, despite no decrease in number of women presenting with stress incontinence. In fact, it takes the average woman with stress incontinence 7 years to seek help!

The Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand (USANZ), in World Continence Week, encourages women to see their doctors and embrace a discussion about surgical treatment options when conservative measures including physiotherapy haven’t worked.

“We are concerned many women may have been alarmed by negative publicity surrounding the recent Senate Inquiry into Mesh products and are therefore not seeking the help they need. We want to reassure women there are good surgical options available, including options with mesh or synthetic materials as well as natural options,” says Professor Vincent Tse, USANZ Female Urology Special Advisory Group Leader.

Urologists are surgeons with over 15 years of medical training, including more than 6 years of specialist training.

“A Woman’s Urologist is an expert who can manage all urinary symptoms and incontinence, and are expert at the pubovaginal sling, which is a natural and organic treatment for stress incontinence, using a woman’s own tissues to hold her up. This procedure has been practiced successfully over many years and has led to excellent quality of life outcomes and outperforms many other stress incontinence procedures,” says Professor Tse.

A Woman’s Urologist works in a team of experienced and caring nurses and physiotherapists to enhance well-being, giving women the freedom to rapidly return to the activities they love and keep active. Avoiding treating significant incontinence will have many negative impacts on a woman’s future bladder function and lifestyle choices. USANZ encourage patients suffering from incontinence to discuss and seek help for the management of their condition.

Media enquiries or interviews:

Professor Vincent Tse

Please email Edwina Gatenby or call +61 402 130 254