title: Effectiveness of a behavioral intervention program for urinary incontinence in a community setting.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purposes of this study were to examine the effectiveness of a behavioral intervention program combining pelvic floor muscle exercise with bladder training for urinary incontinence and also to conduct follow-up assessment after self-training.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted using a non-equivalent control group, pretest-posttest design. The subjects were 60 middle-aged women (control group, n=30; intervention group, n=30) who experienced an episode of urinary incontinence at least once a week. The program was run over a 4 week period (once a week) and composed of urinary incontinence education, pelvic floor muscle exercise, and bladder training.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, there was a significant difference in urinary incontinence symptoms and psycho-social wellbeing related to urinary incontinence between the treatment and control group. Of the variables, weekly leakage frequencies, leakage amounts on each occasion, leakage index, frequencies of nocturia, and quality of life were significantly different between the groups. Follow-up assessment (9th week) indicated that overall incontinence symptoms and psycho-social well-being were significantly different between the posttest and follow-up assessments. Most variables of incontinence symptoms and psycho-social well-being were significantly improved at follow-up assessment versus posttest.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The program was overall effective in terms of relieving symptoms and improving psycho-social well-being related to urinary incontinence, and this effect continued after a 4-weeks self-training period. In the respect that this is a community-based application study, the results can be meaningful and applicable.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, College of Medicine, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea. hsoh@inha.ac.kr
authors.forename: Hyun Soo
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Mi Kyung
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Wha Sook
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Seo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D017773:Pelvic Floor; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000534:rehabilitation*