Elite female Gaelic sports athletes’ experience of urinary incontinence: A qualitative study

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Abstract
Background: Urinary incontinence (UI) is known to be prevalent among elite female athletes. A need for additional sports-specific research has been identified, along with a need to understand female athletes’ experience of UI. There is a dearth of research on elite Female Gaelic (Irish) sports players competing in national competitions. Aim: To investigate elite female Gaelic sports (Camogie and Football players) athletes’ experiences of UI. Design: A qualitative descriptive design using one-to-one interviews. Methods: Following University ethics approval, purposive sampling was used to recruit elite female Gaelic sports athletes aged 18 years or older playing at the county level between November 2022 and August 2023. Data were analysed thematically using reflexive thematic analysis, a six-phase process. Findings: Nine players consented to and completed an interview. Four key themes and nine sub-themes were generated. Four themes were: (1)‘Oh, that happened me’ (when and why of UI); (2) ‘Then I can manage it that way’ (what to do about UI); (3) ‘It is frustrating. . . and it bothers me’ (impact of UI) and (4) ‘No one ever talked’ (talking about UI). High-intensity and high-impact activities were identified by all players as triggers for UI, suggesting stress urinary incontinence. Strategies to manage UI were used by all nine players and included extra and frequent pre-match voiding, wearing protection, and modifying their clothing or fluid intake. Players minimised the extent of their UI; however, all spoke of experiencing either a physical or an emotional impact because of the UI. Conclusions: This study provided qualitative evidence on elite female athletes’ experience of UI. Players used strategies to self-manage their UI, few spoke about, or sought help for their UI whilst many expressed a desire for education. Findings suggest a need for education programmes among players to include information about the condition of UI as well as available treatment options.

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