Structural analysis of women's social representations of urinary incontinence.
Manuela de Mendonça Figueirêdo Coelho, Amanda Holanda de Mesquita, Beatriz Alves de Oliveira and 6 others
PMID 40644651WHAT IT FOUND
Women's immediate words for urinary incontinence were urine, shame, pee, discomfort and pain; many knew pelvic floor exercises but did not practice them, and shame linked to fear and embarrassment.
Key findings
01The central part of women's representations included 15 words that were most often and most quickly recalled, such as urine, shame, pee, discomfort and pain.
02673 women (85.5%) knew pelvic floor strengthening practices existed, but 604 women (75.9%) did not practice them.
03Shame was connected to fear, sadness and embarrassment, while pain was connected to discomfort, burning and infection.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample was a convenience online sample of Brazilian women, not a random population sample, so the words may not represent all women. The paper describes a universe of Brazilian women and does not state that all participants had urinary incontinence. Self-administered questionnaires may introduce response bias. The cross-sectional design captures only a specific moment in participants' perceptions and experiences. The impact of urinary incontinence on sexual life was not explored in depth. The study did not measure clinical outcomes or treatment effects.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that shame, pain or fear are proven causes of poor treatment adherence. The study asked women to write words associated with urinary incontinence and did not test a treatment or measure adherence outcomes. The paper does not state that all participants had urinary incontinence.