Did you know… There are significant gaps in qualitative research on post-menopausal women with urinary incontinence?

Urinary incontinence (UI) affects more than one in three post-menopausal women and is associated with sleep disruption, reduced social participation, hygiene concerns, and lower quality of life. Despite the prevalence and impact, the evidence base remains dominated by quantitative studies that focus on frequency, symptom severity, and treatment outcomes. Qualitative research that explores lived experiences remains notably scarce. This absence limits understanding of the psychosocial dimensions of incontinence – such as stigma, intimacy, and the burden of daily management – and risks shaping interventions that fail to reflect women’s realities. Evidence gaps are especially pronounced for women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, whose experiences remain underrepresented in qualitative continence research. Addressing these gaps is not simply an academic concern, but a clinical priority, if continence care is to move beyond symptom management to become truly person-centred. Greater investment in qualitative and mixed-methods research is urgently required to ensure continence services meet the lived needs of post-menopausal women.