New Research Finds Over 50% of Brits Suffering in Silence with Embarrassing Health Conditions

If you’ve ever suffered in silence about an embarrassing health condition then you’re not alone, it seems that people in the UK, particularly women, are too afraid to come forward and talk about their humiliating health hang-ups.

Oceana Therapeutics, which markets Deflux™ in the UK, conducted research[1] with 1,000 people in the UK and found that 50% of women admitted to feeling low or unable to talk to anyone because of an embarrassing health condition and a third of women have completely avoided seeking treatment. However, men (41%) are far more likely to go to their GP for information about an embarrassing health condition and seek help than women (23%).

The research also revealed that over a third of Brits would be more embarrassed about a bladder related problem than any other and incontinence is the problem that we are least likely to talk to our GP about. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI commonly known as bladder weakness, is a condition which can have a significant impact on a person’s quality of life and according to the Bladder and Bowel Foundation, one third of women in the UK will have some form of SUI at some stage in their lives.

Steve Foley, Consultant Urologist at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading) has pioneered a new treatment for bladder weakness and believes this is a much more widespread problem than the statistics suggest. He says, “My belief is that the majority of women will suffer from this condition, either because of childbirth or the menopause. It is a silent epidemic that women are really scared to talk about, but injection therapy is a quick and simple procedure to rectify this problem.”

Now available to help women with bladder weakness, injection therapy (urethral bulking) is a minimally invasive procedure, which is safe and effective and can be carried out under local sedation. During the procedure a gel called Deflux™ is injected into the urethra endoscopically to obtain a bulking effect, which helps to prevent urine leakage. The results are almost immediate and following treatment patients will return to normal activity within 24-48 hours and it remains in place for over four years.

Clinical trials confirm that Deflux™ is a safe, simple and effective treatment for SUI. The improvement gained to the quality of life for women after this procedure are comparable to those obtained with surgery. Trial show that the cure rate for Deflux™ is excellent for the mild to moderate incontinence groups and satisfactory for the severely incontinent.

Injection therapy is suitable for women of childbearing age, those who prefer a less invasive option, those who are not suitable for a general anaesthetic and women with residual incontinence following a surgical procedure such as a sling insertion.

About Deflux™:
Deflux™ gel is a viscous substance consisting of two components: dextranomer (Dx) microspheres and stabilised hyaluronic acid of non-animal origin (NASHA™). Deflux™ is completely safe and has been successfully used for a decade to treatment more than 200,000 children affected with vesicoureteral reflux. In the treatment of SUI, the dextranomer beads act as the bulking agent and have been shown to remain at the injection site for up to four years. The hyaluronic acid is the carrier agent, which disappears from the body.

[1] Survey conducted by Redshift Research with 500 men and 500 women.