Female Urinary Incontinence in China: Experiences and Perspectives

We sought to understand the perceptions and experiences of Chinese women living with urinary incontinence (UI), a problem that has not yet been characterized in China. We conducted the study using semistructured interviews with 15 women, aged 24-81, diagnosed with UI at the Obstetrics and Gynecology...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Health care for women international 2006-02, Vol.27 (2), p.169-181
Main Authors: Komorowski, Leanne, Chen, Bertha
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Activities of Daily Living
Adaptation, Psychological
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Attitude to Health - ethnology
Avoidance Learning
China
Female
Females
Gynecology
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Middle Aged
Nursing
Nursing Methodology Research
Peoples Republic of China
Qualitative Research
Quality of Life
Self Care - methods
Self Care - psychology
Shame
Sickness Impact Profile
Social Isolation
Surveys and Questionnaires
Uncertainty
Urinary Incontinence - ethnology
Urinary Incontinence - prevention & control
Women - education
Women - psychology
Women's Health
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Summary:We sought to understand the perceptions and experiences of Chinese women living with urinary incontinence (UI), a problem that has not yet been characterized in China. We conducted the study using semistructured interviews with 15 women, aged 24-81, diagnosed with UI at the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic of Fuzhou General Hospital, Fujian, China. We conducted and analyzed the interviews according to the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis model. The five core themes we derived from the participants' responses were uncertainty about UI, self-blame, avoidance, emotional isolation, and desire for treatment. The negative impacts of UI we documented, such as limiting exercise and causing embarrassment, demonstrated that UI is a problem for the affected women in China. Our study was limited by the small sample size and the need for additional reliability/validity measures, but we believe it presented a strong foundation and justification for more rigorous research into UI in China.
ISSN:0739-9332
1096-4665
DOI:10.1080/07399330500457887