Background: Running often elicits stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in parous athletes. While cadence retraining improves running biomechanics, its impact on incontinence is unclear. This feasibility study assessed the implementation and preliminary effects of a 6-week cadence retraining program in parous female runners with SUI. Methods: A total of 8 participants with self-reported SUI and a preferred running cadence ≤ 170 steps/minute underwent treadmill testing before and after the intervention. The program involved a 6-week cadence retraining program using a Garmin Forerunner 55 watch. Feasibility was assessed across 6 domains. Running outcome measures included cadence and vertical oscillation. SUI outcome measures included the Questionnaire for Urinary Incontinence Diagnosis and Urinary Distress Inventory-6 scores. Paired t-tests were conducted (α = .05). Results: Following the 6-week program, feasibility outcomes supported the viability of study procedures and high adherence. Statistically significant increases in cadence ( P = .016) and decreases in vertical oscillation ( P = .019) and concomitant decreases in Questionnaire for Urinary Incontinence Diagnosis ( P = .013) and Urinary Distress Inventory-6 ( P = .042) scores were observed. Discussion: This study demonstrated the feasibility and acceptability of a 6-week cadence retraining program for parous runners with SUI. Given the growing movement to foster athleticism after pregnancy, these findings will appeal to physical therapists searching for acceptable treatment options for SUI in parous runners. Preliminary running mechanics and SUI symptoms warrant a larger randomized controlled trial. A power analysis estimated a sample size of 66 participants for a future full-scale efficacy study.
Ron et al. (Thu,) studied this question.
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