Psychiatric disorders and sexual trauma in women increase the risk of lower urinary tract symptoms, such as incontinence and overactive bladder, a new study finds.
U.S. researchers analyzed the answers in two questionnaires -- the Urogenital Distress Inventory-6 and Incontinence Impact Questionnaire-7 -- completed by 121 female veterans referred to a specialized urology clinic for evaluation of lower urinary tract symptoms. The researchers also examined the women's mental health, history of sexual trauma, age, race and obstetric history. The women were compared to a control group of 1,298 women.
Compared to those in the control group, the women in the lower urinary tract symptoms group had higher rates of psychiatric disorders (64.5 percent versus 25.9 percent) and sexual trauma (49.6 percent versus 20.1 percent). Further analysis revealed that women who were younger than 50 and had a history of miscarriage had higher Urogenital Distress Inventory-6 scores, while those with psychiatric disorders and a history of miscarriage had higher Incontinence Impact Questionnaire-7 scores.
"This is the first study to our knowledge to characterize the association of psychiatric comorbidities and sexual trauma with the type, severity and quality-of-life impact of lower urinary tract symptoms in women using validated surveys. The prevalence of psychiatric comorbidities and sexual trauma is high in women veterans presenting for evaluation of lower urinary tract symptoms," wrote Dr. Adam P. Klausner, an associate professor and director of neurourology, female urology and voiding dysfunction at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, and colleagues.
The study was released online Oct. 22 in advance of publication in the December print issue of the Journal of Urology.
1 comments:
I don't know how much it's true in my case. Mine seems to be more related to always having had jobs where I ended up having to hold my water for hours at a time, keeping the bladder distended. However, when I was a young child (three years old) still being potty trained I had this obsession that number one should only be done in the little (potty training) potty and number two had to be done in the big potty. My vaginal opening also grew closed and was eventually re-opened WITHOUT ANESTHETIC when I was seven years old. Things were not as they should be "down there." And I always had nightmares about a dark figure coming into my room or vague "bad things" happening.
After I had my son, vague memories started coming back and I realized that I had been molested at a very young age by a relative, who had also molested his own daughters. One of my cousins always had severe UTI's when she was little.
I do not have much visual memory of the molestation as it happened when I was very, very young (under the age of three.) I do not have any overwhelming feeling when I recall what vague memories I have. But I do know that it has had a great affect on my life and sometimes wonder if I would be different now had it not happened. Because on a logical level I know it traumatized me very deeply.
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