Comparison of Effectiveness of Home-Based Verses Supervised Pelvic Floor Muscle Exercise in Women with Urinary Incontinence

BACKGROUND: Urinary incontinence (UI) is a significant health problem with serious physical, psychological, and social consequences. Pelvic floor muscle exercise (PFME) is proven efficacious in the prevention and management of UI. A lack of trained physiotherapist in rural areas mars the uptake of physiotherapy and therefore innovative mechanisms are required. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the usefulness of home-based physiotherapy in the management of UI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 49 women, who screened positive for UI from a larger study conducted in 4 randomly selected villages of Charutar region, were included in the study. They were assigned home-based or supervised regimens randomly. All participants received education about UI and its management. A structured PFME schedule was developed. Participants in the supervised group received PFME by a trained physiotherapist, while those in the home-based group received training on exercise. Details of each session were documented through a daily diary in both groups. Revised urinary incontinence scale (RUIS) and incontinence impact questionnaire (IIQ-7) were administered at baseline and after 6 months to assess and compare the impact across groups. RESULTS: Analysis of variance (with post hoc comparisons) was employed to compare the effect of physiotherapy across groups. Only 18 (10 supervised and 8 home-based group) out of 49 women participated. Another 10 provided the required data, albeit had not done any exercises. The mean standard deviation of RUIS (P = 0.84) and IIQ-7 (P = 0.55) scores was similar at baseline across the groups. The RUIS (P = 0.01) and IIQ-7 (P = 0.006) improved significantly; however, post hoc analysis revealed that both RUIS and IIQ-7 improved significantly only in the supervised group. CONCLUSION: Supervised exercise worked better, whereas home-based exercise failed to achieve the desired impact. Identifying barriers in home-based exercise and finding feasible solutions would prove a breakthrough in the management of UI in resource-limited settings.