Evaluating Global Online Search Trends for Urinary Incontinence Treatment Modalities: Insights from Google Trends

This study is aimed at analyzing global public interest in treatment modalities for stress urinary incontinence (SUI) from 2004 to 2025 using Google Trends, a digital tool that captures real-time search behavior.

Google Trends data were collected for eight urinary incontinence treatment modalities, including both conservative and surgical options, over a 21-year period. The search terms analyzed were: "pelvic floor exercise" (PFE), "artificial urinary sphincter" (AUS), "transobturator tape", "Burch colposuspension," "midurethral sling" (MUS), "Bulkamid", "tension-free vaginal tape", and "pubovaginal sling" (PVS). Linear regression was used to evaluate the direction and magnitude of trend changes, and Pearson correlation analysis assessed inter-relationships among modalities. Data were retrieved on 2 April 2025, and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics.

Pelvic floor exercise demonstrated the strongest and most consistent upward trend among all modalities (R² = 0.664, adjusted R² = 0.663, p < 0.001). MUS also showed a pronounced and statistically significant increase in relative search volume (RSV) over time (R² = 0.535, adjusted R² = 0.533, p < 0.001). Bulkamid demonstrated a strong positive temporal trend (R² = 0.585, adjusted R² = 0.583, p < 0.001). AUS exhibited a statistically significant upward trend over the study period (R² = 0.284, adjusted R² = 0.281, p < 0.001). Burch colposuspension showed a significant but more modest increase in RSV (R² = 0.293, adjusted R² = 0.290, p < 0.001). Sling-based surgical techniques demonstrated statistically significant declines in public interest over time.

Public interest is shifting toward conservative management, especially PFE, whereas interest in certain surgical techniques is declining. These findings highlight evolving treatment preferences and the need for region-specific health strategies. Despite its limitations, Google Trends can help to monitor awareness and inform future public health efforts.