An International Continence Society (ICS) report on the terminology for single-use body worn absorbent incontinence products

Exploration of user satisfaction in using the newly redesigned MoliCare Premium Men Pad: in-home use study

BACKGROUND

Men frequently underestimate the significance of urinary incontinence and fail to disclose their condition owing to embarrassment and the associated social stigma. Therefore, successful incontinence management with absorbent products helps individuals cope with the emotional and social challenges arising from incontinence, including visible urine leakage, frequent urination, unpleasant odours, and isolation.

AIM

To assess the most essential performance features of the newly developed MoliCare Premium Men Pad.

METHODS

Computer-assisted personal interviews were conducted to obtain the opinions and satisfaction levels of 69 male users with incontinence in Germany regarding different performance characteristics of the newly designed MoliCare Premium Men Pad after using the product.

FINDINGS

All performance characteristics of the new MoliCare Premium Men Pad design received positive ratings from all interviewees. Notably, 90% of participants were 'highly satisfied' and 'satisfied' with the new MoliCare design.

CONCLUSIONS

The new MoliCare SkinGuard absorbent core technology, anti-leakage guards, and well-engineered product design provide protection, discretion, and comfort to individuals with incontinence. The newly developed MoliCare Premium Men Pad is specifically tailored to meet the primary needs of male pad users and help them maintain a normal lifestyle.

Holistically sustainable continence care: A working definition, the case of single-used absorbent hygiene products (AHPs) and the need for ecosystems thinking

Incontinence is a common health issue that affects hundreds of millions of people across the world. The solution is often to manage the condition with different kinds of single-use continence technologies, such as incontinence pads and other absorbent hygiene products (AHPs). Throughout their life cycle, these fossil-based products form a remarkable yet inadequately addressed ecological burden in society, contributing to global warming and other environmental degradation. The products are a necessity for their users' wellbeing. When looking for sustainability transitions in this field, focus on individual consumer-choice is thus inadequate - and unfair to the users. The industry is already seeking to decrease its carbon footprint. Yet, to tackle the environmental impact of single-use continence products, also societies and health systems at large must start taking continence seriously. Arguing that continence-aware societies are more sustainable societies, we devise in this article a society-wide working definition for holistically sustainable continence care. Involving dimensions of social, ecological and economic sustainability, the concept draws attention to the wide range of technologies, infrastructures and care practices that emerge around populations' continence needs. Holistically sustainable continence care is thus not only about AHPs. However, in this article, we examine holistically sustainable continence care through the case of AHPs. We review what is known about the environmental impact AHPs, discuss the impact of care practices on aggregate material usage, the future of biobased and degradable incontinence pads, as well as questions of waste management and circular economy. The case of AHPs shows how holistically sustainable continence care is a wider question than technological product development. In the end of the article, we envision an ecosystem where technologies, infrastructures and practices of holistically sustainable continence care can flourish, beyond the focus on singular technologies.

Adult incontinence products are a larger and faster growing waste issue than disposable infant nappies (diapers) in Australia

The environmental issues relating to disposable of infant nappies have received considerable attention. However, adult absorbent hygiene products (AHPs) receive less attention, despite having comparable or greater environmental impact. Here we quantify and compare current and future flows of continence related AHPs entering waste streams from both infant and adult populations. Importantly our study accounts for current waste management and landfilling practices across Australia and the environmental implications of AHP disposal. Absorbent hygiene product use from infants and adults was modelled from 2020 to 2030 for Australia, and it's predicted that AHP waste generated by adults will account for between 4 and 10 times that of infants by 2030 due to an aging population. Our results indicate that 50% of used AHPs end up in landfill with both leachate and biogas collection, the remainder going to landfills without biogas collection or without both leachate and biogas collection, based on the most recent national data set, which is over a decade old. The average composition of used absorbent hygiene product (including 60% urine and faeces by mass) is estimated to contain 20% non-biodegradable material, which may complicate the biodegradability of absorbent hygiene products in landfill. Without additional regulatory incentive, the current waste management practices in Australia are likely to continue, with absorbent hygiene products typically entering landfill as municipal solid waste, rather than industrial composting or recycling facilities. More accurate estimation of environmental implications from these disposal pathways requires further work including biodegradation experiments currently unavailable in the literature.