Fecal incontinence in elderly patients: A home-based biofeedback program

The increased prevalence of urinary and fecal incontinence is one of the most important factors in the loss of independence and mobility in the elderly population. It is also one of the major reasons for elderly people to give up their household and move into a nursing home. Anorectal biofeedback therapy is a very effective treatment for fecal incontinence. However, due to the increased immobility of elderly people, ambulatory biofeedback training programs which require the participants to leave their homes and travel to the next available outpatient clinic on a regular basis, especially when depending on public transportation, may prove particularly difficult for elderly, incontinent subjects. Supervised home biofeedback training programs may offer an alternative for those patients, who are motivated enough and not mentally impaired. Two different age groups of women (between 49 and 63; and between 65 and 78 years old) suffering from fecal incontinence due to external anal sphincter impairment, received a supervised home biofeedback program, after extensive anorectal diagnostics including manometry. The program focused on improving voluntary sphincter contraction. After an average of 9 months, anorectal manometry was repeated, and anal resting and squeeze pressure as well as minimal rectal perception threshold were determined. There was no effect on anal resting pressure and rectal perception. However, anal maximum squeeze pressure as well as squeeze pressure over 10 s was substantially increased with no difference between the age groups. Conclusion: Supervised home biofeedback for sphincter insufficiency was effective in improving the voluntary contraction of the anorectum in both age groups. Therefore, biofeedback home training programs may offer an alternative to ambulatory programs for those individuals, who are not mobile enough to regularly attend an outpatient clinic.