Urinary incontinence in 45-year-old women. An epidemiological survey.

In an epidemiological health survey, 515 45-year-old women were interviewed about urological problems, particularly incontinence. A pelvic examination was also conducted on 509 of the women. Twenty-two per cent or 114 women stated that they experienced incontinence, which took the form of stress incontinence in 75%, urge incontinence in 11% and a mixture of the two in 14%. Only 14 women, 3% of all the women interviewed, desired medical treatment for incontinence. In the incontinent women, the pelvic examination significantly more often revealed a cystocele, uterine prolapse or impaired function of the levator muscles. No correlation was found between an enlarged uterus and incontinence. In 211 women with one or more of these findings at the gynaecological examination, the frequency of incontinence was 35%; in 298 women with no pathological findings, the frequency was 15%. The frequency of urinary incontinence was not increased in women with higher parity or in postmenopausal women.