Objective assessment of urinary incontinence: An evaluation of three different pad‐weighing tests

Abstract

AbstractIn 31 women with urinary incontinence the results of three different pad‐weighing tests were evaluated. The three tests were 1) a 48‐hour test performed by the patient at home and at work, 2) a 1‐hour test as recommended by the International Continence Society, and 3) a test including the activities from the 1‐hour test but modified so that the bladder was filled to 75% of the maximum cystometric bladder capacity at the beginning of the test (40‐minute test). The patients found the 48‐hour test and the modified test to be equally representative for their daily leakage, while the 1‐hour test was judged as being less representative than the others. Objectively, the modified test was found to produce a significantly larger urine loss when compared with the conventional tests (median 7 g vs median 3 g, p < 0.003). This may be explained by a significantly larger bladder volume in the modified test during performance of the activity programme. The modified padweighing test is easy to use and interpret owing to its standardized activities. Furthermore, it bypasses the problem of unknown bladder volume at the start of the test.