Prevalence of urinary incontinence among elite athletes of both sexes

Rodríguez‐López, Elena Sonsoles; Calvo-Moreno, Sofía Olivia; Basas-García, Ángel; Gutierrez-Ortega, Fernando; Guodemar-Pérez, Jesús; Acevedo-Gómez, María Barbaño

doi:10.1016/j.jsams.2020.09.017

Cited by 24 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Strenuous exercise has been cited as a risk factor for developing symptoms of SUI [ 14 ]. The pooled data confirmed that SUI was the most prevalent type, according to previous findings in female athletes [ 39 ] and among women who exercised regularly [ 40 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Prevalence of urinary incontinence in female CrossFit athletes: a systematic review with meta-analysis

et al. 2022

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Introduction and hypothesis Studies on the prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) among CrossFit practitioners are on the rise. This systematic review with meta-analysis was aimed at determining the prevalence of UI among CrossFit practitioners. Methods A systematic review of the literature was performed by searching MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, and SPORTDiscus through January 2021. The search strategy included the keywords CrossFit, urine incontinence, exercise, high impact and pelvic floor dysfunction. The inclusion criterion was any study with a sample of CrossFit practitioners and results separated from the other fitness modalities analysed. The subjects were women with no restriction of age, parity, experience or frequency of training. Quality assessment of the studies included was conducted using the Oxford Centre of Evidence-Based Medicine scale and the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale (NOS) adapted for cross-sectional studies. Results Thirteen studies (6 comparative and 7 non-comparative) were included for the systematic review, all using a cross-sectional design. The level of evidence was 4, with their quality ranging from poor ( n = 10) to fair ( n = 3). A total of 4,823 women aged 18 to 71 were included, 91.0% participated in CrossFit, and 1,637 presented UI, which indicates a prevalence of 44.5%. Also, 55.3% and 40.7% presented mild or moderate UI respectively. Stress UI was the most common type reported (81.2%). Conclusions The factors that increased the likelihood of UI were age, body mass index and parity. Exercises based on jumps were commonly associated with urine leakage. CrossFit practitioners presented higher UI than control groups.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Prevalence of urinary incontinence in female CrossFit athletes: a systematic review with meta-analysis

et al. 2022

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“…The training routines of athletes specialized in sprint or hurdles events are very different from those of athletes specializing in throwing or jumping events, among others. Although very few studies to date have analyzed the prevalence of UI in track and field athletes [ 7 , 12 ], authors have shown an especially high prevalence in these events [ 12 ]. Sporting activities from track and field could be damaging the perineal structures and facilitating UI, particularly in athletes who periodically perform high-intensity training, such as elite athletes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Urinary Incontinence Among Elite Track and Field Athletes According to Their Event Specialization: A Cross-Sectional Study

Rodríguez‐López

Acevedo-Gómez²,

Romero-Franco

et al. 2022

Sports Med - Open

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Background Physical effort in sports practice is an important trigger for urinary incontinence (UI). Among high-impact sports, all track and field events require continuous ground impacts and/or abdominal contractions that increase intra-abdominal pressure and impact on the pelvic floor musculature. However, studies to date have not taken into account the specific sports tasks that elite track and field athletes perform according to the competitive events for which they are training. Methods This cross-sectional study describes the prevalence, type, and severity of UI among elite track and field athletes considering their event specialization and training characteristics. A total of 211 female and 128 male elite track and field athletes answered an online questionnaire including anthropometric measures, medical history, training characteristics, and UI symptoms. To determine self-reported UI, the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-UI Short-Form (ICIQ-UI-SF) was used. To determine UI type and severity, the incontinence questionnaire and incontinence severity index were used, respectively. Results The ICIQ-UI-SF showed that 51.7% of female and 18.8% of male athletes had UI, with stress UI (SUI) being the most frequent type (64.4%) for female and urge UI for male athletes (52.9%). Of athletes who were not identified as having UI according to the questionnaires, 24.6% of female and 13.6% of male athletes experienced urine leakage during training, mainly during jumping. Although training characteristics (experience, volume, and resting) were not related to UI, female athletes specializing in vertical jumps showed significantly lower UI prevalence compared to those specializing in horizontal jumps (χ2 [1] = 4.409, p = 0.040), middle-distance running (χ2 [1] = 4.523, p = 0.033), and sprint/hurdles events (χ2 [1] = 4.113, p = 0.043). These female athletes also displayed the lowest training volume. No differences were shown for males (p > 0.05). Conclusions Over half of the elite track and field female athletes have self-reported UI, especially SUI, and prevalence is higher when considering urine leakage events during training. Training characteristics and specialization were not related to UI identified by questionnaires, but female athletes specializing in vertical jump events showed the lowest prevalence and training volume. Males showed significantly lower prevalence, without correlation with their specialization. Sport professionals should increase UI detection among elite athletes and design-specific approaches that consider their physical demands to make visible, prevent, or improve pelvic floor dysfunction in this population.

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“…While women athletes are unlikely to seek medical attention for their UI or disclose the health condition to their coaches, they do believe that UI should not be left to them to manage alone [ 21 ]. Professionals who support women athletes therefore need to be aware of the prevalence of UI and its implications [ 22 ] to ensure early identification of athletes who are at risk, enabling early, quality treatment and interdisciplinary clinical collaboration [ 23 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Urinary Incontinence in Competitive Women Powerlifters: A Cross-Sectional Survey

et al. 2021

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Background Urinary incontinence (UI) can negatively affect a woman’s quality of life, participation in sport and athletic performance. The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of UI in competitive women powerlifters; identify possible risk factors and activities likely to provoke UI; and establish self-care practices. Methods This international cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey completed by 480 competitive women powerlifters aged between 20 and 71 years. The Incontinence Severity Index (ISI) was used to determine the severity of UI. Results We found that 43.9% of women had experienced UI within the three months prior to this study. The deadlift was the most likely, and the bench-press the least likely exercise to provoke UI. ISI scores were positively correlated with parity (τ = 0.227, p < 0.001), age (τ = 0.179, p < 0.001), competition total (τ = 0.105, p = 0.002) and body mass index score (τ = 0.089, p = 0.009). There was no significant correlation between ISI and years strength training (τ = − 0.052, p = 0.147) or years powerlifting (τ = 0.041, p = 0.275). There was a negative correlation between ISI score with having a pelvic floor assessment (η = 0.197), and the ability to correctly perform pelvic floor exercises (η = 0.172). Conclusion The prevalence of UI in this cohort was at the upper limit experienced by women in the general population. Women who had undergone a pelvic floor examination or were confident in correctly performing pelvic floor exercises experienced less severe UI.

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Prevalence of urinary incontinence among elite athletes of both sexes

Cited by 24 publications

References 26 publications

Prevalence of urinary incontinence in female CrossFit athletes: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Prevalence of urinary incontinence in female CrossFit athletes: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Urinary Incontinence Among Elite Track and Field Athletes According to Their Event Specialization: A Cross-Sectional Study

Urinary Incontinence in Competitive Women Powerlifters: A Cross-Sectional Survey

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