Urinary incontinence and quality of life in women with severe obesity : an observational study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1590/Keywords:
Women’s Health, Urinary Incontinence, Obesity, Morbid;, Quality of LifeAbstract
The primary objective of this study was to
determine the prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) in
women with severe obesity. Other objectives included
assessing the quality of life among women with obesity
with UI and comparing levels of pelvic floor muscle strength
and lumbar disability between women with and without UI.
A cross-sectional observational study was conducted
involving 56 women with class III obesity. The International
Consultation of Incontinence Questionnaire-Short Form was
used to detect the presence of UI, and the King’s Health
Questionnaire was used to assess the quality of life of those
considered incontinent. Pelvic floor muscle strength was
evaluated using the PERFECT scale, while lumbar disability
was verified using the Oswestry Disability Index. The results
indicated that UI was prevalent in the studied population,
with a rate of 57.1% (n=32). The sample showed low quality
of life scores in the domains of “General Health Perception (51.5 ± 22.8) and “Impact of Incontinence” (51.0 ± 36.8). There were
no statistically significant differences in pelvic floor muscle strength
levels and lumbar disability between the groups with or without
UI. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the
incidence of vaginal childbirth in the subgroup with UI (62.5%)
compared to the subgroup without UI (25%) (p=0.005). Overall,
UI was prevalent in most of the studied population, and the sample
showed poor quality of life. Furthermore, vaginal childbirth was
found to influence the occurrence of UI.
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