Siu Judy Yuen-Man
Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, People's Republic of China
Qual Health Res. 2014 Jun;24(6):801-810. doi: 10.1177/1049732314530811. Epub 2014 Apr 14.
Overactive bladder (OAB) is a common chronic bladder dysfunction worldwide. However, the illness experiences of women with OAB in Asian countries have not been well documented. In this article, I investigate the illness experiences of women with OAB in Hong Kong. I adopted a qualitative study design by conducting 30 in-depth, semistructured interviews with women who were diagnosed as having OAB and were aged between 28 and 55 years. Negative illness experiences were noted among the participants, including embarrassment, shame, frustration, helplessness, resignation, uselessness, and self-seclusion. These negative experiences were not only the result of the physical symptoms and limitations brought on by the bladder condition, but were also caused by social difficulties such as the flippant attitudes of primary care providers, the tortuous journey of seeking and receiving treatment, and a lack of understanding from social members such as family members and colleagues in the workplace.
膀胱过度活动症（OAB）是一种在全球范围内常见的慢性膀胱功能障碍。然而，亚洲国家女性膀胱过度活动症患者的患病经历尚未得到充分记录。在本文中，我调查了香港女性膀胱过度活动症患者的患病经历。我采用了定性研究设计，对30名年龄在28至55岁之间、被诊断患有膀胱过度活动症的女性进行了深入的半结构化访谈。参与者中存在负面的患病经历，包括尴尬、羞耻、沮丧、无助、顺从、无用感和自我封闭。这些负面经历不仅是膀胱疾病带来的身体症状和限制的结果，也是由一些社会困难造成的，比如初级护理人员的轻率态度、寻求和接受治疗的曲折过程，以及家庭成员和职场同事等社会成员缺乏理解。
