Prevalence of Urinary Incontinence and Associated Factors in Women with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) can compromise the pelvic floor muscles, with the possible occurrence of urinary incontinence (UI). This study aimed to determine the prevalence of UI and associated factors in women with SLE. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted over 12 months in women with SLE. UI was assessed using the three Incontinence Questions (3IQ), severity using the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire - Short Form (ICIQ-SF), impact of urinary symptoms using the Urinary Impact Questionnaire (UIQ-7), quality of life (QoL) using the 12-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12), and functional performance using the 30-s Sit-to-Stand (SIT) and Timed Up and Go (TUG) tests. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were performed, and factors associated with urinary incontinence (UI) were investigated using Poisson regression with robust variance, with prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Statistical significance was defined as p < 0.05. RESULTS: A total of 231 women (age 47 ± 12 years) were included. UI was identified in 52% (95% CI 46.0-58.7) of the participants. In the bivariate analysis, UI was associated with age, paid employment, family income, and some clinical and obstetric characteristics. In the final multivariate Poisson regression model, lower physical and mental health scores were associated with UI (PCS PR 0.99; 95% CI 0.97-1.00; p = 0.024; MCS PR 0.99; 95% CI 0.97-1.00; p = 0.033). CONCLUSIONS: UI was present in more than half of the women with SLE and was associated with worse QoL.