NIH panel seeks to dispel stigma associated with fecal and urinary in...(NIH. This conference was conducted under...),Health

In addition to the material presented at the conference by speakers and the comments and concerns of conference participants presented during discussion periods, the panel considered pertinent research from the published literature and the results of a systematic review of the literature commissioned by OMAR. The systematic review was prepared through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Evidence-based Practice Centers (EPC) program, by the Minnesota Evidence-based Practice Center. The EPCs develop evidence reports and technology assessments based on rigorous, comprehensive syntheses and analyses of the scientific literature, emphasizing explicit and detailed documentation of methods, rationale, and assumptions. The evidence report on Prevention of Fecal and Urinary Incontinence in Adults is available at http://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/evidence/pdf/fuiad/fuiad.pdf.

The panels statement is an independent report and is not a policy statement of the NIH or the federal government. The NIH Consensus Development Program, of which this conference is a part, was established in 1977 as a mechanism to judge controversial topics in medicine and public health in an unbiased, impartial manner. NIH has conducted 118 consensus development conferences, and 28 state-of-the-science (formerly technology assessment) conferences, addressing a wide range of issues. A backgrounder on the NIH Consensus Development Program process is available at http://consensus.nih.gov/forthemedia.htm.

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