Prevalence of Urinary Incontinence in Women Living in Delhi

Introduction Urinary incontinence is a common and distressing medical condition, severely affecting quality of life. The condition is usually under reported as many women hesitate to seek help or report symptoms to medical practitioners due to the embarrassing and culturally sensitive nature of this condition. The objective of the study is identification and estimation of women suffering from this under reported, disabling condition. This information can be further used for providing relevant rehabilitation and improving their quality of life. Method 400 Women, living in and around Delhi, 18 years and older were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire Results Of the 400 women subjects recruited for the study, 53 % of women sampled were incontinent, 72 % were at risk of developing incontinence, a larger percentage of women reported mild to moderate symptoms of incontinence and over 89 % women underreported the condition and were unaware of the treatment options available. . Conclusion As we are in 21st century and Indian women is taking a step towards economic independence. Still there are certain medical conditions like Urinary incontinence being taken as a social stigma. The study concludes a high prevalence rate of urinary incontinence and its lack of awareness.