title: ICIQ: a brief and robust measure for evaluating the symptoms and impact of urinary incontinence.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop and evaluate the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire (ICIQ), a new questionnaire to assess urinary incontinence and its impact on quality of life (QoL).
  
  
  METHODS
  A developmental version of the questionnaire was produced following systematic literature review and views of an expert committee and patients. Several studies were undertaken to evaluate the psychometric properties of the questionnaire, including content, construct and convergent validity, reliability and sensitivity to change.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The ICIQ was easily completed, with low levels of missing data (mean 1.6%). It was able to discriminate among different groups of individuals, indicating good construct validity. Convergent validity was acceptable, with most items demonstrating 'moderate' to 'strong' agreement with other questionnaires. Reliability was good, with 'moderate' to 'very good' stability in test-retest analysis and a Cronbach's alpha of 0.95. Items identified statistically significant reductions in symptoms from baseline following surgical and conservative treatment. Item reduction techniques were used to determine the final version and scoring scheme, which also demonstrated good psychometric properties.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The final ICIQ comprises three scored items and an unscored self-diagnostic item. It allows the assessment of the prevalence, frequency, and perceived cause of urinary incontinence, and its impact on everyday life. The ICIQ is a brief and robust questionnaire that will be of use in outcomes and epidemiological research as well as routine clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Bristol Urological Institute, Southmead Hospital, Bristol, United Kingdom. kerryavery1977@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Kerry
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Avery
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Donovan
authors.forename: Tim J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Peters
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: Momokazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gotoh
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Abrams
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*