Grant: Project Grant

The experience of urinary incontinence when females exercise is very common, affecting between 15 and 80% of those who regularly participate in physical activities, depending on the frequency and intensity of training. This "exercise incontinence" may ultimately lead females to withdraw from their physical activities, and the resultant inactivity can lead to poor health and/or well-being later in life. Little is known about the mechanisms that cause exercise incontinence; damage to the pelvic floor muscles or their surrounding connective tissues and pelvic floor muscle fatigue are plausible explanations. Conservative management approaches such as pelvic floor muscle strengthening exercises and intravaginal support devices (pessaries) are effective for many females suffering from urinary incontinence induced by everyday activities such as coughing or sneezing, yet it is not known whether these approaches are effective specifically when leakage predominantly or only occurs during exercise. Through this study we will (i) investigate anatomical and mechanical properties of the pelvic floor muscles in female runners who do and who do not leak urine during running to determine whether differences are evident at baseline and/or after a single bout of running, (ii) determine whether abdominal pressures or impact forces experienced during running are different between females who do and do not leak urine when they run, and (iii) determine whether pelvic floor muscle training or an off-the-shelf pessary may effectively eliminate urine leakage during running among females who regularly experience exercise incontinence. The results of this study are essential to guide prevention strategies and conservative interventions that will allow females to continue to engage in physical activities without leaking urine, mitigating their ultimate withdrawal from physical activities because of urine leakage.