Prevalence of Urinary Incontinence and Incontinence-related Quality of Life in Korean Women: A Population-based Study

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To assess the prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) and incontinence-related quality of life in Korean women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: During April 2003, the prevalence of overall, stress, urge and mixed UI, frequency of incontinence symptom and quality of life influenced by UI in Korean women was assessed by telephone survey. RESULTS: Of the 1,303 women with a mean age of 48.1 (+/-12.9, S.D.) years, 537 (41.2%) reported UI, comprising 492 (37.8%) with stress UI, 234 (18.0%) with urge UI, 194 (14.9%) with mixed UI and unclassified 5 (0.4%). The prevalence of UI increased with age significantly (p< 0.05). The frequency of stress UI symptom was as follows: 'always' 3.0%, 'a few times a day' 3.7%, 'about once a day' 3.9%, '2-3 times a week' 7.5%, 'less than 1 in a week' 81.9%. Incontinence-related quality of life was significantly dependent on the type of incontinence: the proportion of women who feel unsatisfactory with their incontinence was significantly higher in urge UI and mixed UI than stress UI (p< 0.01). The need for medical consultation for UI was also variable according to the type of incontinence: 20.0% in urge UI, 19.1% with stress U and 25.8% in mixed UI. However, the proportion of women who do not willing to consult medical help was significantly higher in stress UI than other types of UI. CONCLUSION: The present study revealed that there was a high prevalence of UI in Korean women and the impact of UI on the quality of life was high. Therefore, tailored education to the women about the UI seems to be highly necessary.