title: The prevalence of urinary incontinence and its burden on the quality of life among older adults with medicare supplement insurance.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Estimate the prevalence and burden of urinary incontinence (UI) on the quality of life (QOL) among adults (65 or older) with Medigap insurance.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were obtained from the health update survey (HUS), which contains questions on demographics, comorbid conditions, and the Veteran's RAND 12-item health status survey. The mail survey was fielded on a random sample of 15,000 insureds from 10 states in 2008. Respondents were divided into those with UI and others, based on their response to a question about leaking urine during the last six months. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to estimate the likelihood of UI and its impact on QOL while controlling for respondent demographics and comorbid conditions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 5,530 eligible respondents, 37.5% reported having UI. The strongest predictors of UI were female gender, advancing age, and obesity. All the QOL estimates were significantly lower for those with UI (P < 0.001). Further, UI had a stronger influence on QOL than did diabetes, cancer, and arthritis, particularly from a mental health standpoint.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Consistent with other Medicare populations (e.g. Medicare managed care), UI was common in Medigap insureds, strongly associated with lower QOL affecting mental, physical, and social well-being, and is often untreated.
authors.affiliation: Health Care Innovation and Information, Ingenix, 5430 Data Court, Ann Arbor, MI 48108, USA. Kevin.Hawkins@Ingenix.com
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hawkins
authors.forename: Janet
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pernarelli
authors.forename: Ronald J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Ozminkowski
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Stephanie J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Gaston
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hommer
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Migliori
authors.forename: Charlotte S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Yeh
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D006278:Medicare / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012306:Risk; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*