Level of knowledge about urinary incontinence and physiotherapeutic treatment among elderly women

• Autor(a) principal: Siqueira, Mayara Líddya Ferreira
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Outros Autores: Lucena, Renata Newman Leite dos Santos, Lucena, Eleazar Marinho de Freitas
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Research, Society and Development
• Texto Completo: https://rsdjournal.org/index.php/rsd/article/view/35186
• topic: Urinary incontinence; Conservative treatment; Aged; Knowledge; Pelvic floor.; Incontinencia urinaria; Tratamiento conservador; Personas mayores; Conocimiento; Piso pelvico.; Incontinência urinária; Tratamento conservador; Idosos; Conhecimento; Assoalho pélvico.

Urinary incontinence is a public health issue that affects elderly women, however most of the elderly population is unaware of the role of physical therapy in improving this condition. This study aimed to investigate the level of knowledge about urinary incontinence (UI) and physical therapy among elderly women. It was an exploratory and quantitative study with women aged 60 years or over using an electronic form after disclosure and invitation on social networks. The sampling, therefore, was for accessibility and convenience, and the volunteers answered questions referring to sociodemographic characteristics, health status, life habits and obstetric data; and the 'Incontinence Quiz' questionnaire, which has questions about knowledge about Urinary Incontinence and Physiotherapeutic Treatment. Quantitative data were evaluated using descriptive and inferential statistics and presented in tables for better delineation of results. The prevalence of incontinent elderly women in the study was 38.2%, the chi-square test showed a significant association between having UI and the number of deliveries (p<0.001), and between having UI and gynecological surgeries (p<0.000). 96.2% of the investigated elderly women did not seek physical therapy care, while 20.3% highlighted the lack of knowledge as the main barrier to seeking the health service. The elderly female public presented a brief knowledge about the factors that influence and interfere with UI, as well as the physical therapy treatment.