Quality of Life Impact and Treatment Need According to Frequency of Urinary Stress Incontinence

Lee, Wan; Lee, Jun Taik; Lee, Jeong Zoo

Abstract

PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to investigate the impact on quality of life of urinary incontinence and to examine its relationship with treatment need in community women according to the frequency of stress urinary incontinence(SUI) and SEAPI score.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
In 554 of total 811 women, a questionnaire survey was conducted in a typical farming village of a southern region of Korea. The frequencies of SUI were divided into 5 groups(A, less than 12 times/year; B, less than 4 times/month; C, 1 time/week; D, more than 2 times/week; and E, more than 1 time/day) and the SEAPI score into 3 groups according to the sum of all categories(a, 0-5; b, 6-10; and c, 11-15). Each objective criterion was compared with the responders' quality of life indices, cognition indices about symptom and acception indices of treatment.
RESULTS
Of the 554 participants, 274(49.5%) had experienced SUI at least once in the last year. In the study of influences on quality of life according to the frequency of SUI and SEAPI score, statistically significant correlations were noted from groups C and b about daily life and social life categories(p<0.05), but not in the sexual life category. Groups E and b had statistically significant correlation in the influences on cognition of symptom(p<0.05). Groups C and b had statistically significant correlation in the influences on the acceptance of treatment (p<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
In spite of its great effect on quality of life, SUI has hardly induced community women to accept the need for its treatment. These findings suggest that more medical education and information about SUI should be offered. These preliminary results may be used as quality of life indices, cognition indices about symptoms and acception indices in future SUI surveys.