Comedian Jo Brand has recently come under fire after making several quips made about incontinence on the BBC show QI, which received an influx of complaints, including one from a particularly incited viewer who claimed the jokes were sexist and ageist. 

Brand has been cleared by the BBC Trust over the gags, after a formal complaint to the Trust was originally rejected earlier this year and now an appeal to the Trust’s Editorial Standards Committee has also been turned down. The committee concluded the joke about incontinence were “editorially justified”, did not amount to prejudice and did not breach programme guidelines.

The Carers UK campaign, Caring for Carers, just got the attention it needed as top politicians are calling for an urgent debate to discuss and immediate extra aid for carers. Nearly 60 MPs from all three main political parties have signed a Commons motion calling for extra aid for carers.

Dr Hywel Francis, Labour MP who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Carers, said:

“Carers need to be treated with more dignity and respect.”

Tory MP Peter Bottomley added:

“I’m glad The Mirror is campaigning.”

In the National Strategy for Carers the government pledged that, by 2018 ‘carers will be supported so that they are not forced into financial hardship by their caring role.’

Carers cannot wait another 9 years, that is why Carers UK is asking for your help, head over to the Carers Poverty Charter page and complete the form to show your support to the campaign.
Carers UK’s poverty charter is backed by Alzheimer’s Society, Citizens Advice, Contact a Family, Counsel and Care, Crossroads Caring for Carers, Every Disabled Child Matters, for dementia, Mencap, Macmillan Cancer, Motor Neurone Disease Society, National Autistic Society, Oxfam, Parkinson’s Disease Society, Princess Royal Trust for Carers, Rethink, USDAW and Vitalise.

The Phoenix Medical Device and Diagnostic Conference for Chief Executive Officers is one of best known conferences of its segment, and every year during the conference the Phoenix Awards are presented for outstanding achievement in the Medical device and diagnostic industry to individuals and companies selected by industry CEOs and, this innovative, non-surgical treatment for female stress urinary incontinence was named the 2009 ‘Most Promising New Product’.

Developed by Novasys Medical, Inc., the Renessa treatment offers women afflicted with stress urinary incontinence an opportunity to resume activities that make their lives fulfilling.

The Renessa treatment can be performed in the convenience of a physician’s office, or in an outpatient setting, using local anaesthesia. There are no incisions, bandages or dressings required. Recovery is rapid and comfortable, with minimal post-procedure limitations.

More than 350 urologists, uro-gynaecologists and gynaecologists have been trained and have performed the Renessa procedure on nearly 3,000 patients.

About Novasys Medical

Novasys Medical, Inc. is a privately held, venture-backed company which develops innovative therapies in women’s health. The company’s initial focus is the development and commercialization of the Renessa System, a proprietary, non-surgical approach to the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence (SUI).

On Monday, we discussed the effectiveness of invasive operations in the treatment of urinary incontinence. We based our discussion on a study that compared the effectiveness of less invasive procedures to traditional open surgery and other surgical approaches.

Today we would like to talk about an invasive procedure to treat prostate cancer that can increase the chances of post-sugary incontinence. A less invasive robotic surgery used in the treatment of prostate cancer is being related to male incontinence and erectile dysfunctions.

Men who had this surgery have greater chances of becoming incontinent than men who had conventional open surgery, says a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

However, the newer technique cuts patients’ hospital stays, requires far fewer blood transfusions, and carries less than half the risk of leaving behind scar tissue necessitating a second surgery.

That is one of the reasons why you should always ask for second medical opinion in cases like this.

It is estimated that a total of 6 million people in the UK – 10% percent of the population – is looking after sick or elderly relatives and friends. As Carers, these people save the country an incredible sum of £87 billion a year and yet still many of these people are struggling to afford the basic everyday living costs.

With that in mind, The Daily Mirror and Carers UK are launching a campaign to improve the lives of Britain’s carers. On Sunday 11th October, the Daily Mirror joined forces with Carers UK to call for an immediate review of carers’ benefits. Carers UK chief executive Imelda Redmond said:

“The whole issue of allowances is an absolute disgrace. It is not properly recognised how people have to give up their jobs and look after sick and disabled relatives.”

The current Carers Allowance or main benefit for carers, is the lowest of its kind and many carers are not even aware they are entitled to such benefit. Payments are way below the national minimum wage. Carers are currently paid just £53.10 a week which in a minimum of 35 hours’ caring works out at £1.52 per hour when the government minimum wage is £5.80 per hour.

But the benefit is denied to carers if they care for fewer than 35 hours a week, if they receive a state pension, if they earn more than £95.0 a week after tax or if they are full-time students.

The campaign first launched by Carers UK has already won the backing of over 200 organisations including the Daily Mirror.

The campaign’s demands the Government to:

1. Protect carers from falling into poverty or financial hardship.
2. Reflect carers’ different circumstances.
3. Help carers to combine caring with paid work and study.
4. Be easy to understand and straightforward to claim.

What are your views on the current legislation on benefits for carers? Do you think the government is right to assume family should look after their relatives for less than people not working and claiming Job Seekers Allowance, which currently stands at £64.30 for over 25 year olds? Write your comments in the box below.

Last week in San Francisco, California, held the 39th Annual Meeting of the International Continence Society (ICS). The event attracted over 2,000 professionals in the fields of urology, gynaecology, uro-gynecology, physiotherapy, nursing, neurourology, anorectal surgery and paediatric urology.

Leading continence experts presented a rich scientific programme covering breakthroughs in science, research and medicine. Among the many incontinence treatments and studies presented at this year’s meeting one in specific draw the spotlight thanks to its effectiveness and quality of life improvements.

This minimally invasive device named Adjustable Continence Therapy (ACT) system proved to be an effective treatment for women with stress urinary incontinence associated with intrinsic sphincter deficiency.

The ACT bulks the bladder neck with adjustable silicone balloons providing urethral cooptation as well as bladder neck support. Each balloon is attached to a titanium port buried in the labia majora allowing for postoperative titration of the balloons for maximal efficacy.

So far, the tests were conducted in 162 patients who had the device implanted and have completed in some cases a 3 years follow-up where the results achieved impressive improvement in 83% of the patients.

The results shown that the Adjustable Continence Therapy (ACT) system is an effective and safe treatment for recurrent female stress urinary incontinence.

For more information on incontinence and advice on incontinence or incontinence products, why not visit our website allaboutincontinence.co.uk

A study published on the renowned website UroToday suggests that Transobturator male slings can help manage stress urinary incontinence after prostatic surgery.

The study was conducted by the Department of Urology, Tenon Hospital, Groupe Hospitalo-Universitaire EST, Assistance Publique-Hpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), University Paris VI in Paris, France.

In total, 102 patients took place in the study where researchers were trying to determine the safety and prospectively evaluate the clinical outcome after prostatic surgery by placement of a suburethal transobturator sling.

With a minimum follow up of only 6 month, results cannot be considered relevant in conditions like incontinence, but results were pretty good. Of 102 patients, 64 were cured, 18 were improved, and 20 were not improved.

The final conclusion was that placement of a transobturator sling is a safe and effective procedure, giving durable results for stress urinary incontinence after >1 yr of follow-up.

As part of this month’s Continence Awareness Week two nurses are sending the message that there is no shame to incontinence, as they attempt to break down the stigma attached to the condition.

Continence advisors Helen Pursch and Elizabeth Shaw said bad continence problems will affect one in four Australians at some point in their lives, but 60% do not seek medical help.

Which is mostly due to the embarrassment factor. But often the problem can be easily fixed with a few simple life changes or by using some of the excellent products now available.

They say it is important to note that incontinence is not just a part of ageing that one must accept. There are various types of incontinence and various causes, ranging from nervousness to stress incontinence after childbirth.

The theme of Continence Awareness Week this year was carers, focusing on the impacts of those around patients with continence problems.

If you require any other incontinence help & advice or are looking for excellent products to aid your condition please visit the Allanda website.

Townsville Hospital in north Queensland is leading the way in treating women with urinary stress incontinence.

The hospital is one of the first in Australia to use a MINIARC – a non-invasive miro-sling fitted during day surgery.

Professor Ajay Rane, the hospital’s director of urogynaecology:

“The surgical procedure is quite a small procedure – it takes about two to three minutes, it involves making a small cut where the bladder is and then we insert this little sling.”

The structure is so robust that we believe it will hold on even if you were to say go for a run after 48 hours or lift some heavy shopping bags.”

He added: “Our oldest patient is 95-years-old and our youngest patient is 17. In fact, the operation is so minimally invasive it can be done in some instances under local anaesthesia and therefore it can be actually used for patients of any age group whatsoever.”

Whilst these sorts of treaments are suited to some people, others prefer the completely non-invasive option.

If this is you, then Allanda provide all the products and advice required to deal with your incontinence.

Please visit the website for more information.

The Bladder and Bowel Foundation will be holding this years National Continence Awareness Week held from 21st to the 25th September 2009.

The main focus of this years campaign is the fact that incontinence and bowel control problems can affect anyone at any age. Local events will be held to highlight to those who are affected by incontinence, patients and carers alike, that there is no need not suffer in silence.

The Bladder and Bowel Foundation was formed in September 2008 but has a 20 year history having replaced both Incontact (Action on Incontinence formed in 1989) and the Continence Foundation (established in 1992 and closed in May 2008).