Poor pelvic floor health in Australians aged 40 to 75 years

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to investigate pelvic floor health in communitydwelling South Australians aged 40 to 75 years. Participants were 656 volunteers who completed the Pelvic Floor Bother Questionnaire that included questions about frequency and associated bother for six bladder items (stress, frequency, urge, leakage, discomfort, bulging) and two bowel items (problems emptying bowel, flatulence). Sexually active participants were asked about dyspareunia. Data were analysed per-item (frequency, percent), amount of bother (median values, interquartile range), and per-summed (sub score) responses. Gender-age effects were assessed using van der Waerden tests (for non-parametric data) and univariate logistic regression models. Men and women in each age group reported bladder and bowel problems and dyspareunia. There was no increasing age effect for women, while older men (60+ years) reported significantly more problems than younger men. Older women had a significantly higher risk of dyspareunia compared with any other gender-age group. Poor pelvic floor health is a reality for men and women aged over 40 years. Recommendations include public health education to improve health literacy and increase self-efficacy, and active community interventions or digital technology approaches to improve pelvic floor health for people aged 40 to 75 years living in the community.