Urinary Incontinence in Premenopausal Women: Prevalence, Risk Factors and Impact on Quality of Life

Objectives: To determine the prevalence and risk factors of urinary incontinence (UI), and assess its impact on the quality of life (QOL) in premenopausal women.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 690 women aged from 18 to 53 were interviewed using a demographic questionnaire and the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Short Form.

Results: The overall prevalence of any UI was 27.2%. Of the 188 women reporting UI the types were: stress 36.7%, urgency 32.4% and mixed 30.9%. The mean value of the age and body mass index (BMI) of the cases with UI was statistically significantly higher than the group without UI (P < 0.01). In the premenopausal women of similar age and BMI the incontinence rate was significantly higher in those who had a normal vaginal delivery than those who had a Cesarean section (P < 0.01). In the logistic regression analysis it was determined that the effect on the occurrence of incontinence was as follows in terms of age, education and number of pregnancies; age > 35 years had an odds ratio of 1.896 (95% confidence interval [CI]:1.29-2.80); the effect of the status of not attending a school or only attending primary school had an odds ratio 1.839 (95% CI: 1.23-2.75) and the number of pregnancies > 2 had an odds ratio 1.495 (95% CI:1.00-2.26).

Conclusion: Being older than 35, having a low educational level and a gravida greater than two are the independent risk factors in terms of the occurrence of UI in premenopausal women.