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

Introduction and Hypothesis: 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. Methods: 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. Results: 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. Conclusions: 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.