Calidad de vida en personas adultas mayores con incontinencia urinaria que asisten a unidades de salud del Cantón Azogues, 2023-2024

Abstract

Background: Urinary incontinence (UI) is the inability to control the urinary bladder, which affects the functional, social, medical and hygienic areas and alters the quality of life of older adults, which will lead to several pathologies such as urinary incontinence. Objectives: To determine the quality of life in older adults with urinary incontinence attending Health Units in the Azogues canton, 2023-2024. Methods: A quantitative observational, analytical, and prospective study was conducted, with a sample of 80 older adults with urinary incontinence (UI) attending Health Units in the Azogues canton. Data were collected through a direct interview that gathered sociodemographic information: gender, age >65 years, education level, and marital status. Quality of life and urinary incontinence were assessed using the WHOQOL-OLD and ICIQ-UI SF questionnaires. Data were analyzed using SPSS Statistics 21.0 and presented in tables. Results: The sociodemographic variables showed that the female sex prevailed over the male sex, at ages of 65-75 years, level of "primary" education and marital status "married." The most common type of incontinence was “urge”. The WHOQOL-OLD instrument has a “good” quality of life and the ICIQ-UI SF instrument has a score of 10. Conclusion: Sociodemographic factors and the type of urinary incontinence affect the quality of life in older adults. Early diagnosis could help establish better control of the pathology