Glossary

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Incontinence

Incontinence is the involuntary loss of bladder and/or bowel. There are six primary type of incontinence: stress incontinence, urge incontinence, mixed incontinence, overflow incontinence, reflex incontinence, and functional incontinence.

Types of Incontinence

Stress Incontinence - A leakage of small amounts of urine due to sudden pressure on the bladder, such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, or exercising. Stress incontinence is caused by weakening of the muscles supporting the bladder. Typical causes are childbirth and prostate surgery.

Urge Incontinence - A sudden urge to urinate that is so strong it cannot be held long enough to reach the bathroom. Urge incontinence can have many causes, including; urinary tract infection (UTI), hysterectomy, aging, childbirth, stroke, among many others.

Mixed Incontinence - Mixed incontinence is a combination of the symptoms of stress and urge incontinence. Mixed incontinence also shares the causes of stress and urge incontinence.

Overflow Incontinence - Overflow incontinence occurs due to the inability to empty the bladder completely. This leads to involuntary urination and leaks. The bladder muscles are unable to contain urine under pressure, causing the remaining urine to leak out. Overflow incontinence is most common in men with enlarged prostate, and can also occur from nerve damage, weakened bladder muscles, and some medications.

Reflex Incontinence - Reflex incontinence is when the bladder leaks without any sensation of the need to urinate. The person is unaware of the need to urinate and a void occurs unexpectedly. Reflex incontinence can result from neurological injuries, multiple sclerosis, and damage from surgery.

Functional Incontinence - Functional incontinence occurs due to the functional inability to get to a restroom or understanding of the need to use the restroom. With functional incontinence, the urinary tract is not affected, but rather the person is unable to move to the restroom or is cognitively impaired and doesn’t understand the sensation. Causes of functional incontinence include obesity, dementia, mental illness, and physical impairments.

Latex-Free

Latex-free adult incontinence products do not contain natural rubber (latex), increasing comfort for those with incontinence conditions who may also be allergic to latex. Comfort Plus provides a wide range of high-absorbency latex-free adult briefs, adult diapers, and disposable absorbent underwear.

What is Absorbency?

Absorbency generally refers to the amount of fluid a product can hold. When we talk about the absorbency of adult incontinence products, such as tab-style briefs or disposable adult underwear (DAU), we often refer to “voids,” or emptying a full bladder. Comfort Plus provides a full selection of the best, high-absorbency incontinence products – products which can absorb and hold more than two voids (or up to 44 oz. of fluid) while still keeping skin dry and free of sores or other diseases.

Void

A void is an episode where urine or feces leaves the body. The episode can be from either voluntary or involuntary loss of urine or feces.

Refastenable Tape Tabs

Refastenable tape tabs utilize a two-part refastenable tape system that extends the wearability of a traditional tab-style brief. The applicability of this multiple reopening/closing style in briefs is particularly useful in situations where the wetness of the tab-style brief needs to be assessed, or if the tab-style brief must be readjusted. Comfort Plus has a wide variety of disposable briefs with the refastenable tape-tab design to choose from on our website.

Micro-hook Closure Tabs

Micro-hook closure tabs are refastenable tabs that securely fasten the brief. They work by gripping the soft, cloth-like outer layer of an incontinence brief. . Micro-hooks are incredibly durable and very secure, keeping the adult diaper in place for the duration of wear time.

Host Garment

Host garments are a type of disposable underwear garment equipped with a moisture-proof backing. Host garments come in a variety of styles, including tape tabs, refastenable tabs, and pull-on disposable underwear.

Moisture-proof Backing

A moisture-proof backing is the most common type of outer-layer for an effective incontinence product. Moisture-proof backing can be a poly (plastic) outer-layer or a cloth-like material that does not allow moisture to pass through on a pad or brief. If you are seeking the best solution to stay dry and have fewer leaks, you want to get an incontinence product with moisture-proof backing.

Cloth-like Backsheet

Cloth-like backsheets are soft, cloth-like, backing to incontinence products. Cloth-like backsheets are made from a non-woven material. Cloth-like backsheets are an alternative for those who are allergic to poly (plastic) or dislike the plastic feel of an adult diaper. Effective disposable incontinence products are made of either cloth-like backsheets or poly backsheets.

Super Absorbent Polymer (SAP)

Super-Absorbent Polymers, referred to as SAP, are small beads that turn into a gel when liquid is absorbed. SAP is the key to super-absorbent incontinence products because it absorbs all the wetness within the product, keeping skin and clothes dry. 

Disposable Absorbent Underwear (DAU)

DAU stands for Disposable Absorbent Underwear. DAU is a unisex pull-on style incontinence product from the manufacturer of Tranquility Products. DAU is best for people who are used to wearing traditional underwear, as it is pulled up and worn just like traditional underwear. Tranquility Disposable Absorbent Underwear is one of Comfort Plus’s best selling products.

Brief

A brief, also known as a diaper, is a unisex incontinence product that utilizes tape tabs, allowing the product to open fully. Briefs can be used for adults with more limited mobility or who like the ability to tighten and retighten the tabs. Briefs are typically used for maximum protection with urine and bowel incontinence.

Booster Pads

Booster pads are made to be added to any disposable incontinence product with moisture-proof backing for additional absorbency. Booster pads have a flow-through design that allows the pad to fill to capacity first, and then pass additional fluid to the host (primary) garment. They can be placed inside any disposable undergarment with a moisture-proof backing for added absorbency and extend wear-time. Booster pads help reduce changes and contain bowel incontinence.

Capacity Under Pressure (C.U.P.)

Capacity Under Pressure (C.U.P.) is the measurement used by Tranquility Products to test the absorbency of a product. Many manufacturers advertise the absorbency of their products based on how much synthetic urine is absorbed, without consideration of wearing the product. C.U.P. takes into account the pressure that would be added from a human using the product, making it a better measure of absorbency.