Lara C, Nacey J
University Department of Surgery, Wellington School of Medicine.
N Z Med J. 1994 Sep 28;107(986 Pt 1):374-6.
To assess the prevalence of urinary incontinence in New Zealand women of European, Maori and Pacific Island descent aged 18 years and over.
A questionnaire, designed to be self administered, was sent to a group of 1028 women selected at random from the electoral roll in central Wellington. Incontinence was defined as any involuntary loss of urine. If present, details were sought regarding the occurrence, type, and severity of the incontinence so that the prevalence and nature of the problem within ethnic groups could be determined.
The prevalence for Maori women (46.8%) was significantly greater than for either Pacific Island (29.2%) or European women (31.2%) (chi 2 = 14.02, p = 0.001). Increasing age, and parity were associated with increasing prevalence of incontinence for all ethnic groups. Of the incontinent women, 9% were continually incontinent, 28% once or more daily, and 37% more than twice monthly. A further 26% were incontinent less than twice monthly. The most reported type of incontinence was stress incontinence (48% of incontinent women), with 27% reporting urge incontinence, and 21% a mixed picture of stress and urge. There was no significant difference in the frequency of these symptoms between the different ethnic groups. Fifty per cent of incontinent women reported wanting help for their urinary problems, but only one third had sought medical assistance, with many regarding incontinence as a normal occurrence.
Urinary incontinence is common in New Zealand women irrespective of ethnic group. The low proportion of women seeking medical assistance emphasises the need for much greater awareness and public education of what is largely a treatable clinical problem. Urinary incontinence is estimated to affect more than one quarter of the female population. The prevalence varies according to different age groups, and although it is recognised that incontinence is more common in the elderly, a significant number are young with nearly 20% of female children experiencing episodes of urinary leakage. The medical, personal and social impact of urinary incontinence is substantial, but surprisingly it is largely ignored, both by women with the condition, and by those providing health services to them such that it has been described as 'the hidden epidemic'. In New Zealand, research has been carried out on the prevalence of urinary incontinence and reasons for not seeking treatment in the European community, but the other major ethnic groups in New Zealand (Maori and Pacific Island) have not been investigated. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of urinary incontinence in these ethnic groups and to determine any differences to the prevalence of incontinence in European women in a similar socioeconomic environment. In addition, it was hoped to obtain some understanding of the attitudes of the women in each group to incontinence and their perception of the currently available treatments and medical services.
评估年龄在18岁及以上的欧洲、毛利和太平洋岛屿裔新西兰女性尿失禁的患病率。
向从惠灵顿市中心选民名册中随机抽取的1028名女性发放一份自行填写的问卷。尿失禁定义为任何非自愿的尿液流失。如果存在尿失禁情况，则询问有关其发生、类型和严重程度的详细信息，以便确定不同种族群体中该问题的患病率和性质。
毛利女性的患病率（46.8%）显著高于太平洋岛屿裔女性（29.2%）或欧洲裔女性（31.2%）（卡方检验=14.02，p=0.001）。所有种族群体中，年龄增长和多产与尿失禁患病率增加相关。在尿失禁女性中，9%为持续性尿失禁，28%每天一次或更多次，37%每月超过两次。另有26%每月尿失禁少于两次。报告最多的尿失禁类型是压力性尿失禁（占尿失禁女性的48%），27%报告急迫性尿失禁，21%为压力性和急迫性混合情况。不同种族群体之间这些症状的发生频率没有显著差异。50%的尿失禁女性表示希望针对其泌尿问题获得帮助，但只有三分之一寻求过医疗援助，许多人将尿失禁视为正常现象。
无论种族如何，尿失禁在新西兰女性中都很常见。寻求医疗援助的女性比例较低，这凸显了提高对这一在很大程度上可治疗的临床问题的认识并开展公众教育的必要性。据估计，尿失禁影响超过四分之一的女性人口。患病率因不同年龄组而异，虽然人们认识到尿失禁在老年人中更常见，但相当一部分是年轻人，近20%的女童有尿液泄漏情况。尿失禁对医疗、个人和社会的影响很大，但令人惊讶的是，无论是患有这种疾病的女性，还是为她们提供医疗服务的人，都基本忽视了这一问题，以至于它被描述为“隐性流行病”。在新西兰，已经对欧洲社区尿失禁的患病率和不寻求治疗的原因进行了研究，但尚未对新西兰其他主要种族群体（毛利人和太平洋岛屿裔）进行调查。本研究的目的是评估这些种族群体中尿失禁的患病率，并确定在类似社会经济环境下与欧洲女性尿失禁患病率的差异。此外，希望了解每组女性对尿失禁的态度以及她们对现有治疗方法和医疗服务的看法。
