The Epidemiology And Quality Of Life Of Surgically Managed Urinary Incontinence

ObjectiveTo analysis the character of the urinary incontinence patients who were surgeried and assess whether anti-urinary incontinence surgery results in significant improvements in urinary incontinence and its effect on patients'quality of life (QOL) utilizing validated questionnaire.MethodsFour hundrnd and forty-five paitients were enrolled in the study. All patients were requested to complete the Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7) and Urinary Distress Inventory (UDI-6) as part of their preoperative assessment. History, physical, and demographic data were also collected. All subjects underwent subtracted cystometry and urethral function tests prior to surgery. A phone follow-up was used to obtain postoperative IIQ-7 and UDI-6 scores.ResultsFour hundred ten patients completed the pre- and postoperative quality-of-life forms and were included in the analysis. Mean follow-up was 22.1 months (range 6.1– 49.8). There were significant improvements in postoperative scores for both the IIQ-7 and the UDI-6 (P <.001). Significant improvements were also seen in subscales measuring urge symptoms, stress incontinence symptoms, and symptoms of voiding dysfunction. These improvements were consistent, regardless of type or severity of stress incontinence.ConclusionThe IIQ-7 and UDI-6 are validated tools that can be used to provide some objective evidence for the impact of urinary incontinence on patients'lives. Utilizing these two validated quality-of-life tools we show that anti-urinary incontinence surgery results in significant improvement in patient quality of life and symptoms of urgency, stress incontinence, and voiding dysfunction.