Incontinence Pads

Incontinence Pads - Safety for Urinary Incontinence

Incontinence care includes various medical aids which are used to care for the patient when other therapy methods do not work or do not work sufficiently. Classic incontinence products include bed pads, discreet incontinence pants and absorbent incontinence pads for protection of mattress, bed sheets and bed.

While incontinence products which are closely fitted to the body, such as pads and incontinence underwear for men and women, are used as a discreet protection to enable the patient to participate in social life during the day, pads with a higher absorbency are mainly used at night and in nursing care. An exception is the care of bedridden patients - in these cases, incontinence pads are used all day.

Incontinence Pads Protect Bedding & Mattress from Soaking

Highly absorbent mattress covers are used during the night to protect the bed, bed sheets and mattress from being soaked with urine, as incontinence care worn close to the body is often not sufficient at night. The reason for this is that many patients who suffer from urinary incontinence completely lose the ability to control the urge to urinate at night. This causes them to lose larger amounts of urine at night than during the day. On the one hand, the usual incontinence pads and incontinence underwear cannot absorb such a large amount of fluid and, on the other hand, the patients usually do not wake up to change the pads or pants.

If urine leaks from the pad or pants, the incontinence sheet absorbs and securely traps the fluid and thus provides ideal bed protection. This means that the linen does not need to be changed and cleaned in the morning, only the incontinence pad needs to be replaced.

Incontinence Pads or Bed Pads?

The terms incontinence pad and bed pad are often used synonymously. Generally, there is very little difference between the two types of protective underlays. Bed pads usually have a lower absorbency than incontinence pads because they are mainly used for other purposes and should therefore only be used for patients with low-grade urinary incontinence. Incontinence pads, however, are specially designed for the incontinence care of patients with urinary incontinence. Hartmann's range of MoliCare products, for example, offers a choice of different absorbent cores and sizes to suit the patient's individual situation.

Disposable and Reusable Incontinence Pads

Basically, a distinction is made between disposable bed pads and reusable pads. While disposable underpads are replaced daily or even several times a day and disposed of immediately, washable incontinence pads can be reprocessed using a washing machine and dryer. The benefit of washable underpads is that less waste is produced and new underlays need to be purchased less frequently.

Reusable underpads are in fact very durable and can be reprocessed very often before they should be disposed of. In addition, many patients consider the material of reusable incontinence pads to be more comfortable on the skin than disposable incontinence pads. Just like the disposable product, the washable reusable underlay also has an impermeable film layer that prevents urine from seeping through and thus protects the mattress from moisture penetration.

Other Uses of Bed Pads & Incontinence Pads

In addition to being used as mattress covers, bed pads and incontinence pads can also be used for other purposes in the medical field. Due to their high absorbency, they are suitable, for example, as a pad for wound irrigation, where they catch and trap the excess irrigation fluid. However, due to the pleasant, skin-friendly surface and the impermeable film layer, they are also often used as underlays for dressing changes or phlebotomies. Furthermore, they are of course also suitable as changing pads for use in day care centres, maternity and neonatal wards and paediatrician's practices.

You would like to buy a bed pad or incontinence pad or other continence care supplies and need more information? Our customer service will be happy to advise you! You can reach us either by phone, email or via our convenient live chat.