Determination of Factors Associated With Urinary Incontinence in Older Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND

The objective of the present study was to examine the demographic and physical predictors of urinary incontinence (UI) in older patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD).

METHODS

The cross-sectional observational study comprised 55 patients diagnosed with AD, whose disease severity was assessed by a neurologist as mild to moderate. The following instruments were utilised for evaluation: the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7), the Functional Reach Test (FRT), the Timed Up and Go Test (TUG), the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I), the Activity-specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC) and the Urogenital Distress Inventory (UDI-6).

RESULTS

The patients' mean age was 76.24 ± 6.66 years. A significant difference was found between educational status and UDI-6 scores. No other significant associations were observed between demographic characteristics and UI measures. In addition, IIQ-7 showed weak correlations with TUG (r = 0.222), FES-I (r = 0.257) and ABC (r = -0.250).

CONCLUSIONS

A weak correlation was observed between physical performance, fear of falling, and balance confidence in individuals diagnosed with AD. Moreover, individuals with lower educational attainment exhibited a greater propensity to experience UI. Future research is recommended to investigate the relationship between somatosensory symptoms and UI in individuals with AD.