Abstract
This study aims to investigate the quality of life of elderly women with UI, all living in a philanthropic health care in Catanduva, S.P. It is a cross-sectional descriptive study whose population was women aged 60 years and more, oriented and conscious in time and space, able to be interviewed. The ones who refused to participate in the study were excluded. Data collection was done through a survey with a questionnaire composed of clinic and social-demographic information. To evaluate the quality of life of incontinent elderly we used the (ICIQ-SF) short form-"International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire". The statistical data analisis comprised average, standard deviation, minimum and maximum values to each variable. We interviewed 22 elderly women whose average age was 72,9 years old +- 8,6. All women reported urinary loss and seven (31,8%) reported urinary loss several times a day. The higher percentage of urinary loss happened before they arrival to the bathroom (21,3%), followed by coughing and sneezing (19,1%) and sleeping (12,8%). Concerning interference in the daily life activities, most of them (72,5%) related some interference. We concluded that the Urinary Incontinence (UI) has high prevalence among institutionalized elderly and compromise their quality of live. So we believe that intervention measures should be taken in an attempt to reduce and fight then.
Keywords:
Middle Aged; Aged; Women; Urinary Incontinence; Quality of Life; Homes for the Aged; Catanduva city; Epidemiology Descriptive; Cross-Sectional Studies; Women's Health