You’re Not Alone – The Statistics of Urinary Incontinence

You’re Not Alone – The Statistics of Urinary Incontinence

Urinary incontinence (UI) is so rarely discussed that you may end up feeling like you’re the only one dealing with it. In reality, there are an estimated 17 million people in the United States that have daily occurrences of bladder control issues. The statistics are eye-opening and may help you feel a little less alone. From The National Association for Continence – [url http://www.nafc.org]www.nafc.org[/url]

About 17% of women over 18 years old have overactive bladder (OAB) and an estimated 12.2 million adults have urge incontinence. One in five adults over 40 are affected by OAB or recurring symptoms of urgency and frequency. OAB and UI occur about twice as frequently in women as in men and become more prevalent with age. An estimated 17 million adults in the United States have daily UI and a further 33 million suffer from the overlapping condition, OAB.In women between the ages of 20 and 45, the prevalence of overactive bladder was found to be 36.8%. Stress urinary incontinence, the most prevalent form of incontinence among women, affects an estimated 15 million adult women in the U.S. 29% of individuals ages 60-70 experience leakage when coughing, sneezing, or laughing compared to 17% of men and women ages 30-39. A portion of these individuals also experience urge incontinence. Approximately, 1 out of 3 women over the age of 45, and 1 out of every 2 women over 65 have stress urinary incontinence. In 2010, 211,000 women had some type of surgery for stress urinary incontinence.