INCONTINENCE

Restoring Rest & Preserving Dignity

Rethinking nighttime urinary incontinence for women

By Justyna Kolankowska

Severe urinary incontinence affects more than 13 million Americans and the loved ones who care for them. For most, it is far more than a minor inconvenience. The condition can shape daily routines and significantly impact sleep quality, overall health and emotional well-being, leading to various psychosocial effects.

The majority of older adults with urinary incontinence experience nocturnal lower urinary tract symptoms, with nocturia and nonspecific urinary incontinence being the most common, causing them to wake up one or more times during the night to void. Reports suggest that nocturia affects 70% to 92% of men and women over the age of 60, while the other symptoms occur in about 12% to 24% of older adults, making them one of the most common and bothersome conditions affecting the older population in general.

A Growing Challenge for Women for Women

For women with severe symptoms, nighttime can be especially challenging. Repeated garment bedding changes, fear of leakage and associated embarrassment, health effects such as skin irritation or skin breakdown and persistent fatigue often disrupt sleep and deteriorate overall quality of life. Some women restrict fluid intake in an effort to prevent nighttime accidents, increasing the risk of dehydration and its subsequent side effects, including a variety of symptoms of divergent course. Caregivers, meanwhile, frequently face interrupted rest and the emotional and physical strain of ongoing nighttime support.

Nocturia-related falls can also occur. Waking up several times at night increases trips to the bathroom, often in low-light conditions, while urgency increases instability. Older people with urgency and/or urgency urinary incontinence are significantly more likely to fall than age-matched controls. When it comes to the impact of urinary incontinence on the risk of falling, identification and tailored management appear to be an important fall-preventive strategy, especially in the geriatric population.

Although a subset of patients with urinary incontinence may require surgical intervention, the majority achieve adequate symptom control with conservative therapies. Accordingly, conservative strategies play a central role in long-term management. These include behavioral interventions, pelvic floor rehabilitation, pharmacotherapy and supportive measures aimed at reducing symptom burden and improving quality of life.

Continence products represent an important component of this approach, providing practical symptom control and helping maintain dignity, independence and social participation.

A wide range of options are currently available, including absorbent pads, indwelling urinary catheters, external urine collection systems and intravaginal devices for women.

Nevertheless, despite this variety, options that offer dependable overnight protection, comfort and ease of use in the home setting remain limited. This gap is significant given the substantial and often chronic impact of severe urinary incontinence on quality of life.

Innovation in Home-Based Incontinence Care

The introduction of new noninvasive management solutions aims to address these unmet needs for both patients and caregivers. By offering an external alternative to indwelling catheterization in appropriate patients, noninvasive solutions may support strategies aimed at reducing catheter-associated complications, protecting skin integrity with the goal of supporting skin health and patient comfort in an area of care where only a few options exist.

By expanding options in a category historically underserved for women, the modern approach to management with external catheters is helping users feel more secure, and caregivers feel more supported. With that, greater independence and dignity can be restored, empowering users to feel more confident in their daily lives

Justyna Kolankowska is global clinical program manager and medical science liaison at Wellspect HealthCare. This year, Wellspect announced the U.S. availability of the Surity Female External Catheter, a new noninvasive option designed to help women living with severe urinary incontinence feel more comfortable, rest more easily and manage care with greater confidence. Visit surity.care.