BACKGROUND:There are limited population-based data on urinary symptoms and the natural history of urinary incontinence after a first stroke.
AIM:To study the prevalence of urinary symptoms, and the natural history and factors associated with urinary incontinence after first-ever stroke.
METHODS: We administered a standardised urinary symptom questionnaire at 3 and 12 months after stroke to patients enrolled in the North-East Melbourne Stroke Incidence Study. Urinary symptoms and evolution of urinary incontinence were recorded. Logistic regression was used to model associations between baseline factors and incontinence at 12 months.
RESULTS: More than 80% of survivors reported one or more abnormal urinary symptoms at 3 or 12 months, with nocturia most frequent. Incontinence was present in 43.5% of patients at 3 months, and 37.7% at 12 months, with urge incontinence being most common. Pre-stroke continence (P < 0.001) and female sex (P < 0.001) were independently associated with incontinence at 12 months, whereas the effect of greater stroke severity was magnified with advancing age (P for interaction = 0.05).
CONCLUSION: The majority of survivors reported abnormal urinary symptoms early and late after stroke. Around a third of patients had incontinence at 12 months, with pre-stroke UI, age, female sex and stroke severity predicting its presence.
Written by:
Williams MP, Srikanth V, Bird M, Thrift AG. Are you the author?
Stroke and Ageing Research Centre, Department of Medicine, Monash University, Monash Medical Centre, Clayton, Australia.
Reference: Age Ageing. 2012 May;41(3):371-6.
doi: 10.1093/ageing/afs009
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 22321907
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