Assessment of lower urinary tract symptoms in different stages of menopause.
Larissa Ramalho Dantas Varella, Rossânia Bezerra da Silva, Maria Clara Eugênia de Oliveira and 3 others
PMID 27942131WHAT IT FOUND
Perimenopausal women had the greatest urinary incontinence impact, and stress leakage and urgency were common.
This study did not test treatment.
Key findings
01Stress incontinence was reported by 17.3% of premenopausal women, 50.0% of perimenopausal women, and 48.7% of postmenopausal women.
02Urgency was reported by 0.0% of premenopausal women, 51.9% of perimenopausal women, and 41.6% of postmenopausal women.
03The final ICIQ score was 2.7 ± 3.6 in premenopausal women, 7.0 ± 1.9 in perimenopausal women, and 3.7 ± 0.9 in postmenopausal women, with a significant difference for perimenopause (p=0.04).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study measured women at one time point, so it cannot show whether symptoms persisted or changed over time. Women were not randomly selected, and all were recruited from one gynecology clinic in Brazil. Twenty-four women were excluded after refusing physical examination, which may affect the sample. The assessment chart was created by the authors, and the paper says no LUTS questionnaire has been validated in Brazil. The paper did not test any treatment, so it cannot show that physical therapy or pelvic floor exercises improve symptoms. The reported premenopausal mean age was 37.8 ± 5.6 years, although inclusion criteria said age 40 to 65. The age range is unclear.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that physical therapy or pelvic floor exercises improve lower urinary tract symptoms. This was a cross-sectional assessment at one time point, and women with prior physical therapy for pelvic dysfunction were excluded.