Urinary Incontinence among the Elderly Population Urinary incontinence (UI) is a common lower urinary tract dysfunction defined by the International Continence Society (ICS) as an involuntary loss of urine resulting in social or hygienic problems (Abrams et al 2009). Essentially, urinary incontinence is understood as leakage of urine that occurs beyond the control of the individual. In the elderly population, urinary incontinence greatly impacts the quality of life and is characterized as a ‘cardinal geriatric syndrome’ (Loh et al 2006 & Holroyd-Leduc et al 2004). Urinary incontinence among the elderly is often unaddressed and untreated due to the misconception that it is a part of the natural ageing process. It is undeniable that the symptoms of this condition do present itself due to age related factors, however drug treatment and existing medical conditions lead to worsening of the problem (Loh et al 2006). This condition is strongly associated to a decline in the quality of life among the elderly and due to the nature of the condition, often UI becomes a factor when deciding whether to institutionalize a community dwelling elderly (Samiah Yasmin et al 2013).
3.2 Prevalence of …show more content…
It is to be noted that UI is evidently more prevalent in women than men; however it does reach a point of equivalence at the age of 90 and above. Urinary incontinence is the most common pelvic disorder and this is further supported by Liu et al (2014) who stated that urinary incontinence stands as a global nuisance seeing as more than 40% of women experience this disorder around the world. In a study conducted by Holroyd-Leduc et al (2004) in the United States; the prevalence of UI is 18.5% percent among women and 8.5% among men over the age of 70. This is further supported by Temml et al (2000) whereby the prevalence of UI among women is 26.3% in comparison to men at only 5.0% in
3.2 Prevalence of …show more content…
It is to be noted that UI is evidently more prevalent in women than men; however it does reach a point of equivalence at the age of 90 and above. Urinary incontinence is the most common pelvic disorder and this is further supported by Liu et al (2014) who stated that urinary incontinence stands as a global nuisance seeing as more than 40% of women experience this disorder around the world. In a study conducted by Holroyd-Leduc et al (2004) in the United States; the prevalence of UI is 18.5% percent among women and 8.5% among men over the age of 70. This is further supported by Temml et al (2000) whereby the prevalence of UI among women is 26.3% in comparison to men at only 5.0% in