Is coital incontinence a manifestation of urodynamic stress incontinence or detrusor overactivity?

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: Coital incontinence (CI) is an underreported symptom among sexually active women. It has been assumed that incontinence at penetration (CIAP) is due to urodynamic stress incontinence (USI), while coital incontinence at orgasm (CIAO) is thought to be due to detrusor overactivity (DO).

METHODS

To evaluate demographic and urodynamic findings associated with coital incontinence (CI) and to confirm the hypotheses 'CIAP is associated with USI' and 'CIAO is associated with DO we performed a retrospective study of 661 sexually active women attending a tertiary clinic between January 2017 and December 2019 for pelvic floor dysfunction. All patients filled in a standardized questionnaire and had a clinical examination and multichannel urodynamic testing. Women were asked if they experienced urine leakage during intercourse and the timing of such leakage.

RESULTS

Of 661 sexually active women, one third (n = 220) reported coital incontinence. While 121 (18%) women experienced CIAP, 172 (26%) had CIAO and 76 (11.5%) suffered both. For women with pure USI, the prevalence of CIAP (61.7%) and CIAO (69.5%) was significantly higher than for women with pure DO, where only 12.3% had CIAP and 8.6% had CIAO. Factors significantly associated with CI were body mass index, mid-urethral closure pressure (MUCP) and abdominal leak point pressure (ALPP). When only women with pure USI or DO were included, USI remained associated with CI while DO was not.

CONCLUSIONS

CI is clearly associated with SUI and USI and is likely to share etio-pathogenetic mechanisms. CI seems to be a manifestation of USI, even when it occurs during orgasm.