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Job strain, occupation, and bladder health among women

Objectives: Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) are common among employed women. An underexplored topic is whether characteristics of women's occupations may influence LUTS. The present study examined whether job strain and its individual components (psychological demands, decision latitude) were associated with greater LUTS and their impact and whether, compared to managerial and professional occupations, occupations characterized by manual labor, sales, service, nursing, and teaching were associated with greater LUTS and their impact.

Methods: Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults cohort study data were analyzed. Job strain and occupation were assessed in 1987-88 and 1995-96. In 2012-13, LUTS and their impact were assessed. LUTS/impact category (a composite variable ranging from bladder health to mild, moderate, and severe LUTS/impact) was regressed on job strain and occupation in separate analyses, adjusting for age, race, parity, education, and financial hardship (n = 1006).

Results: Job strain and its individual components were not associated with LUTS/impact. In comparison to managerial and professional occupations, service occupations in 1987-88 and 1995-96 were both associated with greater odds of LUTS/impact in proportional odds logistic regression analyses. Employment as a nurse, health assistant, or health aide in 1995-96 was associated with greater odds of any LUTS/impact versus bladder health. Support positions in 1987-88 and sales positions in 1995-96 were associated with greater odds of moderate or severe LUTS/impact versus bladder health or mild LUTS/impact.

Conclusions: Future research should examine characteristics of workplaces that may promote or constrain bladder health (e.g., time and autonomy to void when desired, infrastructure to void).

Sonya S Brady,1 Andrés Arguedas,2 Jared D Huling,2 Gerhard Hellemann,3 Cora E Lewis,4 Cynthia S Fok,5 Stephen K Van Den Eeden,6,7 Alayne D Markland8

  1. Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, Program in Health Disparities Research, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
  2. Division of Biostatistics, University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
  3. Department of Biostatistics, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
  4. Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
  5. Department of Urology, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
  6. Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland, California, USA.
  7. Department of Urology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
  8. Division of Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine and Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
Source: Brady SS., Arguedas A., Huling JD. et al. Job strain, occupation, and bladder health among women. Neurourol Urodyn. 2024 Jan;43(1):69-80. doi: 10.1002/nau.25297