A recent study from the USA has revealed that more than half the people aged 65 or more who live outside nursing homes report episodes of bladder or bowel  incontinence, with women experiencing the condition considerably more than men.

12% of women who suffer from urinary incontinence had severe or very severe forms of the condition, while the rest of the women and virtually all the men surveyed reported slight or moderate incontinence according to the study, released by the National Center for Health Statistics, an American government organisation. The study is the first U.S. study to pull together data on incontinence among people living in their own homes, nursing homes, and in residential care facilities and in hospices, as well as people who receive health assistance in their homes. In the past, because different definitions of incontinence were used for the various groups, the researchers had been unable to directly compare the results for one group against each other.

“The purpose was to show…the prevalence and the magnitude of the issue,” said Yelena Gorina, of the agency’s Office of Analysis and Epidemiology. “Because it’s a very serious issue, a very debilitating issue.”

Benjamin Brucker, an assistant professor of urology at the NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan, said that he hoped that a major study that shows how common incontinence is will encourage people to overcome the shame and embarrassment of the condition. “A lot of people that…have incontinence are afraid or fearful or not willing to bring it up to their doctor, and not willing to bring it up to their family members,” Brucker said.

Results varied considerably for people in institutions, from the 39% in residential care facilities who reported an episode of bladder or bowel incontinence during the seven days before they were interviewed to the 75.8% of long-term nursing home residents who could not completely control bladder or bowel function in the 14 days prior to their survey.

As with many other countries, incontinence has become more prevalent in the U.S.A. as the  population has aged.