Postprostatectomy Incontinence and Self-management for Urinary Incontinence After Laparoscopic Radical Prostatectomy: A Cross-sectional Study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe postprostatectomy incontinence (PPI) after laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (LRP), self-management strategies for managing incontinence, and factors influencing self-management.

DESIGN: A descriptive, cross-sectional study.

SUBJECTS AND SETTING: The sample comprising 37 males with prostate cancer who underwent LRP was recruited within first 2 years. The study setting was a tertiary care hospital in Beijing, China. An additional 78 individuals who responded to a mailed invitation sent from September 2015 to October 2016 participated in the study.

METHODS: Participants completed a questionnaire that queried demographic and pertinent clinical data. The questionnaire also included 2 validated instruments. The International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICIQ-UI SF) was used to assess urinary incontinence (UI) following radical prostatectomy and its severity. The Strategy and Effectiveness of Symptom Self-Management questionnaire of Postprostatectomy Incontinence (SESSM-PPI) was used to evaluate self-management of UI, including strategies used and their perceived effectiveness.

RESULTS: Data analysis was based on 115 respondents who completed all components of the questionnaire; 95 (82.6%) indicated having UI. Forty-one patients (43.2%) indicated mild UI, 47 (49.5%) indicated moderate UI, and 7 (7.4%) indicated severe UI. The mean score of the SESSM-PPI was 14.04 ± 7.92, indicating a low level of self-management.The top 5 strategies with moderate effectiveness were in the following order: "use pads or adult diapers"; "pelvic floor muscle training"; "avoid extracting heavy objects"; "avoid drinking"; and "eat more fruit to prevent constipation." The Spearman correlation analysis revealed a positive correlation between the frequency of use of self-management strategies and incontinence severity.

CONCLUSIONS: Urinary incontinence is prevalent among males with prostate cancer managed by radical prostatectomy. Respondents tended to report mild to moderate UI severity. Self-management of UI among respondents is low.