[Home-based devices for the treatment of female urinary incontinence: A literature review]

Abstract

Objective: Literature review on the home-based options for the conservative management of stress urinary incontinence including biofeedback and weighted vaginal cones..

Methods: Research was conducted in the Cochrane Library and Pubmed to find articles, published until March 2020, dealing with the conservative management of incontinence.

Results: A total of 9 randomized controlled trials were included, 4 concerning biofeedback and 5 concerning vaginal cones. Most of them highlighted the superiority of these three methods compared to the absence of treatment but were not superior compared to the pelvic floor muscles training in the clinic setting.

Conclusion: Home-based devices for female stress urinary incontinence is a safe and effective treatment for female urinary incontinence. It has not shown superiority to physiotherapist-guided pelvic floor muscle reinforcement and needs more evidence to gain its place as a first line therapeutic option.

Keywords: Biofeedback à domicile; Cônes vaginaux; Electrostimulation; Home-based biofeedback; Incontinence urinaire à l’effort; Stress urinary incontinence; Vaginal cones.