Prevalence and Incidence of Urinary Incontinence in a Diverse Population of Women With Noncancerous Gynecologic Conditions

Objectives: To determine the prevalence and the incidence of urinary incontinence (UI) in a diverse cohort of women presenting with noncancerous gynecologic conditions and to assess factors associated with UI prevalence and incidence. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of data from the Study of Pelvic Problems, Hysterectomy and Intervention Alternatives, a longitudinal study of women with noncancerous gynecologic conditions (bleeding, pelvic pain, and symptomatic fibroids). Urinary incontinence was defined as incontinence in the last 4 weeks as reported on interviewer-administered annual questionnaires. We also evaluated the types of UI: stress, urge or mixed incontinence. Results: The study population of 907 women was composed of 40.8% white, 28.0% African American, 17.3% Latina and 8.1% Asian. The mean age was 44.1 (5.4) years and 48.5% had an annual household income of ≤$50,000. The overall prevalence of any UI was 51.1%. At baseline, stress UI was the most common at 39.4% followed by urge UI at 23.7% and mixed UI at 18.9%. The average annual incidence for any UI was 4.2%. Thirteen percent of the women who underwent hysterectomy developed incident UI after their surgery. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, prevalent UI was associated with the following: age in decades (odds ratio [OR] 1.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2-2.2), Latina race/ethnicity compared to white (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.3-3.3), and parity (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.2-2.4). None of the factors evaluated were associated with incidence of UI. Conclusions: Urinary incontinence is very common in women seeking care for noncancerous gynecologic conditions, particularly among older, parous Latinas.