Adaptation and use of health services by primiparous women with urinary incontinence.

OBJECTIVES

To describe the use of health services by primiparous women with urinary incontinence by (a) examining the quality of life of these women and (b) describing the different predictors associated with their use of health services.

DESIGN AND SETTING

This correlative study is a secondary analysis of a broader epidemiologic study.

PARTICIPANTS

The 382 women identified as having urinary incontinence in the main epidemiologic study in Quebec, Canada.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Consultation rate; quality of life, predictors of quality of life, and use of health services; treatments received; and reasons for not seeking help.

RESULTS

Consultation rate was 11.1%. Many sociodemographic, clinical, and urinary incontinence factors were significantly associated with a decreased quality of life. Only frequency of nocturia, severe urinary incontinence, use of sanitary protection, and lower scores on the quality-of-life scale were significantly associated with differences in consultation rates. Physiotherapy was the most popular treatment received (71.4%). Most women with urinary incontinence did not consult because they considered urinary incontinence to be normal (47.3%).

CONCLUSIONS

Few women with urinary incontinence used health services for their urinary incontinence problem despite a decreased quality of life. Health professionals need to intervene early and promptly to help women with urinary incontinence deal more adequately with urinary incontinence and to inform women on how and where to seek help.