Hfitness Study 1: Impact in Women with Urinary Incontinence
Study Conclusion: HFITNESS results in significant improvements to incontinence and quality of life measures. HFITNESS provides an important incontinence treatment option and gives women greater access to effective conservative therapy.
Introduction: Urinary incontinence (UI) is common in women and has a vast impact on quality of life (QOL), financial health, and work disability. In-person conservative therapy (pelvic floor muscle training [PFMT], and behavioral and dietary modification) is proven to effectively treat incontinence. However, numerous barriers impede access to in-person care, including limited specialized therapists, financial barriers, and scheduling obstacles. To address these barriers, we developed a comprehensive online pelvic floor rehabilitation program (HFITNESS).
Study Design: We measured continence and QOL outcomes in women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI), urge urinary incontinence (UUI), or mixed urinary incontinence (MUI) treated with HFITNESS. Outcomes were assessed at baseline and following completion of the 2-month HFITNESS program using the validated International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire—Female Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms, Urgency Perception Scale (UPS), Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7) questionnaires, and 24-h bladder diary.
What We Found: Following HFITNESS, 19 participants (2 SUI, 2 UUI, 15 MUI) showed significantly improved stress incontinence scores (3.04 ± 0.19 vs 1.81 ± 0.23, p < 0.001), urgency score (2.52 ± 0.18 vs 2.05 ± 0.14, p = 0.003), quality of life scores (5.16 ± 0.88 vs 3.07 ± 0.70, p = 0.038), and daily incontinence episodes (2.96 ± 0.60 vs 1.06 ± 0.29, p < 0.001). Of respondents, 89% reported program satisfaction, ease of use, and would recommend the program to others.