Author overestimated need in community population with faecal incontinence

doi:10.1136/bmj.317.7155.415

From trainee to consultant, BMJ Group offers doctors around the world tailored information, special events, learning resources and recruitment services at every step along their career path.

... by doctors, for doctors, for patients
We are open for entries!

Online learning

BMJ Learning

High-quality CME / CPD for doctors and other healthcare professionals. BMJ Learning features hundreds of accredited, peer-reviewed learning modules in text, video, and audio formats. Find out more

Courses and Qualifications

BMJ Masterclasses

BMJ Masterclasses, led by experts, help clinicians to use the latest evidence and recent guidelines in practice and meet their CPD/CME requirements. Find out more

Exam Preparation

The leading provider of online exam preparation, helping over 167,000 healthcare professionals to pass their exams. Find out more

onExamination

Search all BMJ comment articles:

From

Limit by

Access to the full text of this article requires a subscription or payment. Please log in or subscribe below.

Sarah Perry, Research associate,
R Philip Assassa, Clinical research fellow,
Kate Williams, Research fellow in nursing,
Nigel K G Smith, Senior clinical research fellow,
C Mark Castleden, Professor of elderly medicine, Leicester,
Leicester MRC Incontinence Study

Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Leicester, Leicester LE1 6TP

EDITOR—In his review on advances in the understanding of faecal incontinence Kamm focused on structural damage as an aetiological factor and surgical intervention as a treatment.1 A review of epidemiological evidence suggests that this focus is misplaced for several reasons.

Kamm states that the prevalence of faecal incontinence is 2% in the adult population and 7% in healthy independent adults aged over 65. These figures probably relate to anal incontinence (loss of gas or mucous as well as …