Impact of urinary incontinence on quality of life and its relationship with symptoms of depression and anxiety in women

Abstract

Objective To assess quality of life (QOL) of women with urinary incontinence (UI) and establish its relationship with symptoms of depression and anxiety in women. Materials and Methods This is an observational cross-sectional study, conducted at the Hospital Universitário Ana Bezerra (HUAB/UFRN) from September to November 2014. Validated questionnaires were used to assess quality of life (King's Health Questionnaire-KHQ), and depression and anxiety (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-HADS). Results There is a negative impact on the quality of life of women with UI (mean 60.62, SD ±31.23), as well as limitations in activities of daily living (49.66, SD±35.78), physical limitations (47.91, SD±35.44), health perception (47.70, SD±24.38) and on the emo-tions domain (46.94, SD±38.11). 45.0% of incontinent women had depressive symptoms and 50.0% anxiety. Conclusion There was a negative impact on almost all domains of QOL in women with UI; cases with mixed urinary incontinence (MUI) reported worse QOL scores. There was a high prevalence of depression and anxiety in this population, and they were associated with worse impact on QOL for incontinent women. The most limited areas were activities of daily living, physical, social, and emotional aspects, health perception, sleep and mood.