Effect of Aerobic Walking Exercise on Stress Urinary Incontinence in Postmenopausal Women

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of aerobic walking exercise on stress urinary incontinence (SUI) among postmenopausal women. Thirty females diagnosed with SUI participated in the research. Participants were assigned randomly into two groups: The usual care group (UC) and the UC plus aerobic walking exercise (TMT) group. The UC group performed pelvic floor muscle (PFM) training only, while the TMT group performed PFM training in addition to aerobic exercise. Myomed biofeedback was used to assess the PFM strength both before and after a 12-week period. The Revised Urinary Incontinence Scale was utilized to assess changes in incontinence severity symptoms after intervention. Findings revealed a significant increase in PFM strength in both UC and TMT groups (p = .011 and p = .010, respectively) and a significant reduction in their Revised Urinary Incontinence Scale (p = .011 and p = .001, respectively) after the end of the 12 weeks of the training program. In addition, there was a more significant increase in PFM strength in the TMT group than in the UC group (p = .010) and a more significant decrease in Revised Urinary Incontinence Scale (p = .011) after 12 weeks of the training program. This study concluded that aerobic walking exercise with PFM training is more effective than PFM training only in increasing PFM strength and improving symptoms of SUI in postmenopausal women with SUI.