Stress incontinence

Urinary incontinence – a widespread disease

In Switzerland alone, an estimated 400,000 people suffer from stress incontinence. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is a condition in which the bladder sphincter is defective. This can lead to unintentional loss of urine when lifting, carrying, climbing stairs, laughing, coughing or sneezing.

232 Mio.

SUI women worldwide
(any age)

40%

SUI women worldwide
(40 years and over)

400‘000

SUI in CH
(any age)

30%

SUI women in CH
(age 18-60)

Affected people

The majority of women affected are women whose bladder sphincter has been weakened by childbirth or wear and tear – or men who have had prostate surgery. Stress incontinence leads to restrictions in everyday life and, depending on its severity, can be associated with considerable losses in quality of life.

METHODS OF TREATMENT

Treatment options for stress incontinence

HINTERGRUND

There are conservative and also surgical treatments to improve stress incontinence.

Conservative treatments include, for example, lifestyle changes (e.g., losing weight if severely overweight, avoiding heavy physical labor), drug therapy, and physical therapy.

The surgical treatments available today combat the symptoms, for example by supporting the defective sphincter muscles with a plastic sling or, alternatively, by injecting connective tissue, proteins, Teflon or silicone; however, these therapies do not change the weakened sphincter muscle. This is exactly where the new therapy for women comes in, which could sustainably strengthen and regenerate the muscle.