Management of Urinary Incontinence in the Elderly

URINARY incontinence in the elderly is prevalent, morbid, costly, and neglected. It affects 5 to 15 per cent of elderly people living in the community, 1 and its prevalence increases to approximately 40 per cent in hospitalized patients2, 3 and to over 50 per cent in institutionalized populations. 4, 5 Neurologic impairment, immobility, and female sex are independent risk factors for incontinence, but neither advanced age nor chronic bacteriuria seem to be. 6, 7 The costs of incontinence are medical (cystitis, urosepsis, pressure sores, perineal rashes, and falls), psychosocial (embarrassment, isolation, depression, and predisposition to institutionalization), and economic. Over 8 billion per year8 is devoted to. . .