You are not alone!

Incontinence is the inability to consciously control the excretion of urine and feces. Incontinence is mostly a side effect of another underlying medical condition. It is essential that a specialist determines the cause of the incontinence.

The statistics of the German Federal Association for Medical Technology (BVMed e.V.) estimate that 5 to 9 million patients are affected by incontinence in Germany alone. Of those patients about 1.2 million receive outpatient care through the statutory health insurance; another roughly 0.3 million patients receive care in nursing homes.

The severity and frequency of incontinence are age-dependent. Incontinence becomes more frequent as people get older. At 40 years of age about 7.6% of women and 1.7% of men are affected by incontinence. At 80 years of age that percentage increases to 40% regardless of gender.

Different forms of incontinence are subdivided into different degrees of severity:

• Category 1/medium meaning a loss of urine in excess of 1200 ml in a 24 hour period; 52% of all incontinence patients fall into this category.

• Category 2/heavy meaning a loss of urine of up to 1800 ml in a 24 hour period; 19% of all incontinence patients fall into this category.

• Category 3/severe meaning a loss of urine in excess of 1800 ml in a 24 hour period; 28% of all incontinence patients fall into this category.

The easiest way to determine the amount of urine loss is by weighing the incontinence aids used in a 24 hour period minus their dry weight. Due to their high absorbency and the low fluid press out BetterDry 10 products are ideally suited for patients with severe incontinence and/or for nighttime use and necessitate fewer changes. These characteristics enable an active lifestyle without having to constantly worry about where to change next. The high leak barriers also make them ideally suited for double incontinence.

76% of all nursing home patients are affected by incontinence. However, about 75% of all incontinent patients receive homecare. 53% of all incontinent patients receive outpatient care services.

Average values for the daily consumption of incontinence aids are also available:

• Category 1/medium 2.6 pieces

• Category 2/heavy 4.2 pieces

• Category 3/severe 6.2 pieces

Across all categories the average consumption is 4.1 products per day. The individual consumption is dependent on a multitude of factors and can significantly deviate from these average values. The German statutory health insurance spends about 0.2% of its budget on incontinence aids.

Source (translated from): https://www.bvmed.de/de/versorgung/hilfsmittel/hilfsmittel-aufsaugende-inkontinenz/inkontinenz-in-deutschland-zahlen-daten-fakten