Urine Incontinence Occurrence and Sexual Hormones in Women With Chronic Spinal Cord Injury/Disease - a Pilot Study

There is a knowledge gap about the influence of the menstrual cycle on bladder function in women with spinal cord injury. So far, studies regarding urinary incontinence have primarily focused on women after menopause. It has become clear that a lack of the sex hormone estrogen, which occurs after menopause, can lead to urinary incontinence. During the course of the menstrual cycle, women also experience fluctuations in their sex hormones, particularly estrogen. The estrogen level is highest before ovulation and decreases afterwards. The investigators aim to explore whether this drop in hormone levels could lead to more frequent urinary incontinence during this phase. In order to offer the patients optimal treatment for urinary incontinence, it is important to understand the potential causes behind it. Participants will document their menstrual cycles and episodes of urinary incontinences over three menstrual cycles using a diary, and urine tests. This research project is a pilot study and is being conducted by Swiss Paraplegic Research at the Swiss Paraplegic Centre. The investigators are recruiting 12 participants who experience incontinence at least once a month and 12 participants who experience incontinence less frequently or not at all.

NCT Number	NCT06892080
Lead Sponsor	Swiss Paraplegic Research, Nottwil
Conditions	Spinal Cord Injury, Urinary Incontinence, Menstrual Cycle
Enrollment	24 participants
Start Date	2025-07-01
Primary Completion	2027-03-01 (estimated)
Study Completion	2027-06-30 (estimated)
Updated on ClinicalTrials.gov	2025-08-03