The racial distribution of female pelvic floor disorders in an equal access health care system.
OBJECTIVE
We examined ethnic differences in female pelvic disorders in an equal access health care system.


METHODS
An electronic medical record review was performed for patients with pelvic floor disorders at a military female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery division for a 1-year period. Primary diagnosis codes and patient reported race were reviewed.


RESULTS
Mean +/- SD cohort age was 55 +/- 16.3 years. A total of 720 patients were identified, of whom 68.8% were white and 18.6% were black. Pelvic organ prolapse was the primary diagnosis in 34.2% of the women, while 19.7% had stress urinary incontinence and 10.8% had urge urinary incontinence. There was no difference in the prevalence of prolapse between black and white women. However, of patients with incontinence there was a statistically significant difference with urge incontinence in more black women (51.2%) and stress incontinence in more white women (66.2%) (chi-square p <0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
There is a similar ethnic distribution of pelvic organ prolapse in an equal access health care system. Of women with incontinence there was a higher prevalence of urge urinary incontinence in black women and a higher prevalence of stress urinary incontinence in white women.
Sears
Christine L Gray
CL
National Institutes of Health/National Capital Consortium Fellowship Program, Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC, USA.
Wright
Johnnie
J
O'Brien
Jennie
J
Jezior
James R
JR
Hernandez
Sandra L
SL
Albright
Todd S
TS
Siddique
Sohail
S
Fischer
John R
JR
D001741:Black or African American; D001213:Asian; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D005260:Female; D005831:Genital Diseases, Female / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D017773:Pelvic Floor; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D044465:White People