📱 A new app will help women with urine leakage

Urinary incontinence is an annoying problem that is also very common. There are ways to diminish the problem, and one of those ways is through workouts with the app "tight" II.

The app has been developed by researchers at Umeå University, and the idea is that it should function as a valuable complement to the healthcare that exists today in Sweden. In a press release, the researchers explain that the app is intended to relieve urinary incontinence problems with urges, i.e. leakage connected with a strong feeling of urination. Tight II contains information and training programs for the pelvic floor and bladder, psychological self-help and lifestyle advice. In addition, users can get tailored advice on training, automated feedback, training statistics and the ability to set reminders for training.

To test how well the app works, the researchers let 60 women with urine leakage test the app for 15 weeks. At the same time, an equally large group had to test an app that only provided brief information about urine leakage.

After 15 weeks, 87 percent of those who used Tight II said that they had fewer problems with their incontinence. The corresponding figure for those who tested the simpler app was 30 percent. When the participants were allowed to assess their problems on a 21-point scale, those who used Tight II said that their problems decreased by 4.7 units. A reduction of three units corresponds to an improvement from leaking several times a day to leaking once a week, which means that the app made a clear difference. The corresponding figure for the test group was 1.6 units.

" This is the first app designed to fight incontinence with urges that has been evaluated scientifically and it is of course great fun that we see such good results for those who used the app,"  says Towe Wadensten, doctoral student in general medicine at Umeå University and one of the researchers behind Tight II in a press release.

As the name suggests, Tight II is a further development of an earlier app called Tight. The previous app has been used for several years already, but the new version is more advanced and can provide more help. However, it is not intended to replace more advanced care but is thought of as a complement.

"Leakage in connection with workouts often happens without warning and can affect life in different ways. The app contains the treatment programs and advice recommended as first-line treatment. Self-treatment is appreciated and can in some cases be an alternative to drug treatment," says Eva Samuelsson, professor of general medicine at Umeå University and one of the researchers behind Tight II. So far, Tight II has only been used by the test group, but researchers are now investigating how to make it available to everyone.

Read the full study here.
Image: Pixabay / bzndenis