The Prevalence of Incontinence and Its Association With Urinary Tract Infections, Dermatitis, Slips and Falls, and Behavioral Disturbances Among Older Adults in Medicare Fee-for-Service.

The study used insurance claims rather than clinical assessments, so it could not confirm incontinence severity or whether leakage caused the recorded events. Incontinence was likely undercounted: the 11.2% prevalence was below published estimates, and people with light or moderate incontinence may not have had a diagnosis coded. Medicare Advantage beneficiaries were excluded, and the analysis used a 5% sample of Medicare fee-for-service claims, so it may not represent all older adults. No medication records were available, so treatment or drug-related factors could not be considered. Dermatitis was captured with general codes because no ICD-10 code for incontinence-associated dermatitis existed in 2018, so some dermatitis cases may not be related to incontinence. The study was observational and cannot prove that incontinence caused UTIs, dermatitis, slips and falls, or behavioral disturbances.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest. No funding source is stated in the supplied text.

Do not read this as proof that incontinence causes UTIs, dermatitis, falls, or behavioral disturbances. The study only compared recorded claims and the authors say it can show correlation, not cause.