Incidence and remission of urinary incontinence in middle-aged women.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of the study was to describe changes in urinary incontinence in middle-aged women.


METHODS
A prospective analysis of 64,650 women aged 36-55 years in the Nurses' Health Study II. Participants reported urine leaking in 2001 and 2003. Two-year incidence and remission proportions were estimated.


RESULTS
The 2-year incidence of incontinence was 13.7%. Incidence generally increased through age 50 years and then declined slightly in older women. Among women with incident incontinence at least weekly, the incidence of stress incontinence increased through age 50 years (2-year incidence 1.7%), and the incidence of urge incontinence was stable across age groups (2-year incidence 0.4%). Also, a minority (38%) mentioned leaking to their physician. Complete remission of symptoms occurred in 13.9% of women with incontinence at baseline.


CONCLUSIONS
We found that incontinence occurs frequently in middle-aged women. Yet few women mentioned incontinence to their physicians; thus, it may be important to initiate conversations about urinary symptoms even among younger patients.
Townsend
Mary K
MK
Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. mary.townsend@channing.harvard.edu
Danforth
Kim N
KN
Lifford
Karen L
KL
Rosner
Bernard
B
Curhan
Gary C
GC
Resnick
Neil M
NM
Grodstein
Francine
F
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000453:epidemiology*
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