Written by Mike Price, OT
If you’re struggling with the inability to hold your urine before you get to a bathroom, you are certainly not alone. Even though it can often feel like you’re the only one dealing with it because it’s so rarely discussed, it may help you to know that an estimated 17 million people in the US have daily challenges with bladder control. This urinary incontinence (UI) can leave affected people feeling stigmatized, negating their sense of independence. They find the problem embarrassing to talk about it with others, and often don’t seek the professional health advice that could help.
With input from our product experts and the actual product users themselves, we’ve compiled a review of the top five product selections for urinary incontinence support. Taking product performance, functionality, and ease of use into account, we also researched customer comments in order to share the best UI support products to help you or your loved one with effectively managing urinary incontinence.
Making our list at number five with their unrivaled leakage protection, the CareActive Unisex Vinyl Pull-On Protective Briefs by Care Apparel fit comfortably over adult diapers and underwear. This added barrier safeguards against errant urinary leaks, optimizing performance and dependability for both men and women living with urinary incontinence challenges. Ideal for users with functional or reflex incontinence and heavier urinary incontinence, these pull-on briefs are also popular with people just wanting a little more security to avoid embarrassing leaks.
They’re available in a wide variety of unisex sizes to accommodate every user in an eco-friendly, machine-washable and dryable, and reusable design. Constructed with soft, reinforced, waterproof vinyl that’s also whisper-quiet so no one ever knows you’re wearing them, these briefs have elastic around the waist and leg openings to ensure a snug, but comfortable fit that won’t irritate the skin. They discreetly slide over underwear or diapers without bulking or bulging.
Protecting both your skin and your furniture, the uniquely-designed CareActive Quilted Waterproof Seat Protector by Care Apparel takes the fourth position in our review. Placed on chairs, sofas, car seats, wheelchairs, and any other seating surface, this comfortable, quilted pad keeps upholstery dry and odor-free. Its innovative configuration highlights an absorbent inner layer to wick away the moisture from the user’s skin, along with a waterproof vinyl backing to shield surfaces from soiling and fluid damage.
Absorbing up to a cup of liquid, this seat protector is ideal for users with any type of urinary incontinence, while it’s especially beneficial for people with sensitive skin, aging skin, and those more susceptible to skin breakdown. Available in three different color options to match your home’s decor, the earth-friendly CareActive seat pad protector is also conveniently machine-washable and dryable, making it easy to clean and maintain while it also provides a cost-saving option to disposable underpads.
Grabbing the third spot on our list with its exceptional odor control and hands-free operation is the Adult Brief Disposal System with Extra Odor Control by Janibell. Often preferred in long-term care and assisted living facilities, this popular adult diaper disposal unit comes in two different sizes to accommodate users aging in place at home, and other folks living with incontinence conditions. Its extra-wide opening is sized for adult briefs, pads, and diapers, not for baby diapers, so there’s plenty of room, while the convenient foot pedal opens the lid without the use of your hands for simple, hygienic operation.
The advanced double-sealing design of the Akord adult incontinence disposal system optimizes odor control to keep your home smelling fresh and clean. Easy to use with its pre-installed continuous liner and cutter, users can customize their bag size every time according to need. This economical feature helps to eliminate waste, allowing users to empty the unit before it’s full. There’s no exposure to the contents, either, as the liner configuration also facilitates sanitary hands-free disposal when you’re emptying the unit.
As the official protectors of both the National Sleep Foundation and the Women’s Choice Award, the award-winning Antimicrobial Waterproof 5-Sided Mattress Protector by PureCare, also known as the OmniGuard Advance, makes our review at number two. Specially formulated to promote cleaner sleep and whisper-quiet protection, this clinically-proven fabric from PureCare provides a breathable, lightweight protective layer to safeguard your mattress against urinary incontinence, creating a more hygienic sleep environment. Covering the top and sides of the mattress without changing its shape, this innovative, waterproof mattress protector delivers a 5-sided barrier to effectively repel and inhibit moisture, allergens, mold, dust mites, mildew, and bacteria. Its antimicrobial silver formulation keeps your bedding fresher longer, greatly reducing odors, stains, and deterioration.
The four-way circular stretch knit of this mattress protector’s construction is comfortable on sensitive skin, reducing shear and friction forces that often lead to skin breakdown. It’s also whisper-quiet, providing a protective barrier you won’t even know is there. Proprietary MiteTight double-bound seams enhance protection against irritants and allergens for cleaner, more restful sleep. Accommodating any mattress type, including innerspring, memory foam, gel, and latex, the OmniGuard Advance mattress protector conforms to strict Class 1 medically recommended allergen standards, making it a great choice for anyone living with UI who is also challenged with allergy sensitivities.
As the first wearable device for urinary incontinence, the DFree Wearable Incontinence Bladder Sensor with Bluetooth Connectivity utilizes ultrasound technology to monitor the volume of your bladder, notifying you through your smartphone when it’s time to go to the bathroom. Used in hundreds of senior care facilities, this amazing DFree device takes the number one spot in our review with its ability to help people of all ages and genders living with UI live full and productive lives without worrying about bladder leaks.
Small, lightweight, and non-invasive, the DFree’s bladder sensor is placed a little above the pubis to monitor your bladder 24/7. Using a patented algorithm, data is collected and analyzed to predict when you will need to empty your bladder before an accident occurs. Its Bluetooth technology enables connection to your smartphone or tablet, sending alerts to let you know when it’s time to go to the bathroom again, with a notification threshold you can set yourself to ensure you have plenty of time to find one.
Empowering all kinds of folks with urinary incontinence to live without worries, this award-winning bladder sensor is ideal for people unable to hold urine in time to make it to the bathroom as well as those who experience difficulty with urge control. It’s also popular with people living with overactive bladder and anyone who has trouble sensing the urge to urinate. Because it helps all users to know their bladder volume at any given time, it’s also used by people who worry about bladder control but don’t want to rely on pads or diapers just yet.
Symptoms of urinary incontinence typically include noticing a stronger urge to urinate than before, urinating more frequently than usual, waking up more often with the urge to urinate (nocturia), leaking urine during sleep (nocturnal enuresis), and painful or uncomfortable urination (dysuria). While the causes of urinary incontinence can be both medical or non-medical, the most common types of UI include:
Stress incontinence - When urine leaks out with coughing, laughing, jumping, and other sudden or strong movements that increase abdominal pressure, this is referred to as stress incontinence.
Urge incontinence (Overactive bladder) - When you feel a strong urge to urinate, even when the bladder isn’t full, that have-to-go-right-NOW feeling is called overactive bladder (OAB) or urge incontinence.
Overflow incontinence - Often caused by blockages or underactive bladder muscles, overflow incontinence happens when the bladder never completely empties, resulting in urine leakage because you never feel the urge to urinate.
Functional incontinence - When other illnesses or disabilities prevent people from easily using the bathroom to empty their bladder but the urinary system itself is working properly, this is functional incontinence. Health conditions like arthritis, dementia, and post-surgical recovery can slow down our functional physical ability to undress and sit on a toilet.
Reflex incontinence - Occurring when the bladder muscle contracts and urine leaks, reflex incontinence comes without any warning or urge to urinate. Often resulting from serious nerve damage and frequently affecting people with multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, damage from radiation or surgery, and other injuries, the nerves that normally inform the brain that the bladder is filling are impaired, which leads to urinary leakage.
Mixed incontinence - Many people will have a combination of different types of urinary incontinence simultaneously. Most women struggle with both stress and OAB symptoms, while mixed incontinence also affects men who have had surgery or removal of an enlarged prostate, along with frail older people of every gender.
Too often, those of us dealing with UI won’t participate in activities outside the home, scared that we’ll have an accident or leakage with embarrassing odors. But the good news is that there is a wide array of helpful support products to assist with every aspect of your incontinence issues. These products can help you get back to living your life to the fullest, assisting you in overcoming any UI-related challenges. Learn more about how each product can help you by clicking on the highlighted link:
Urinary incontinence (UI) refers to the loss of bladder control. Varying from a slight loss of urine following coughing, sneezing, or laughing to the complete inability to control urine flow, UI may have root causes that are due to underlying disease. It can also have causes that aren’t related to a medical condition, including a lack of available bathrooms, extreme anxiety, or intoxication.
There are many types of urinary incontinence, including stress incontinence, urge or overactive bladder incontinence, mixed incontinence, overflow incontinence, functional incontinence, and reflex incontinence.
Because urinary incontinence is such a common problem that most of us experience at one time or another due to a variety of both medical and non-medical reasons, it’s helpful for everyone to know what they can do as support for this condition. This includes disposable adult diapers, washable and reusable underwear, panty liners and pads, both washable and disposable underpads, diaper disposal systems, cleaning wipes and cloths, and specialized treatments and devices.
Our review covered some of the most helpful UI support available today to help people living with urinary incontinence overcome any obstacles they’re experiencing that stop them from feeling confident and independent. The CareActive Unisex Vinyl Pull-On Protective Briefs deliver an extra level of protection against urinary leakage no matter what kind of diaper or pad you’re using, available in multiple unisex sizes to provide a comfortable, non-bulky fit underneath clothing. The CareActive Quilted Waterproof Seat Protector protects both your skin and the surface you’re sitting on with its absorbent top layer and vinyl-backed bottom layer, helping to prevent skin breakdown and keep your furniture clean and odor-free.
Helping to keep your home odor-free, the Adult Brief Disposal System with Extra Odor Control enables hands-free disposal of diapers and other incontinence items and features an advanced double-seal design to ensure odors stay contained, even when you empty the bag. The Antimicrobial Waterproof 5-Sided Mattress Protector by PureCare will aid in keeping your mattress clean, effectively repelling not just urine leakage, but also allergens, dust mites, bacterial growth, and mold/mildew, making this protector especially beneficial for anyone with respiratory and allergy challenges.
As the most popular UI support device that most people said gave them their life back, the DFree Wearable Incontinence Bladder Sensor with Bluetooth Technology is definitely one of the top products for urinary incontinence. Small, compact, and lightweight, this discreet device uses non-invasive and safe ultrasound technology to monitor your bladder size and urine volume, sending the data to your smartphone to alert you as to when you need to use the bathroom. With its 24/7 rechargeable battery power and easy Bluetooth connectivity, the DFree has helped many people living with urinary incontinence to live their lives with confidence, enabling them to travel outside the home without worrying about accidents and leakage.
Learn more about the products in this article and much more UI support in our Incontinence catalog, which also covers fecal incontinence support. You can also find a wealth of helpful information on a variety of health, medical, and disability topics written by our therapy experts at our Caregiver University blog, including this comprehensive incontinence support article.
Co-Founder of Rehabmart and an Occupational Therapist since 1993. Mike has spent his professional career working in multiple areas of Occupational Therapy, including pediatrics, geriatrics, hand therapy, ergonomics and inpatient / outpatient rehabilitation. Mike enjoys writing articles that help people solve complex therapeutic problems and make better product choices.
