Overactive bladder in Taiwanese women: re-analysis of epidemiological database of community from 1999 to 2001

Abstract

Aims: To update our previous computerized epidemiological data according to the new taxonomy, we re-evaluated and re-analyzed the data using the current definitions of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) which were approved and published by the ICS in 2002 and 2010 according to patient perception. Further, we divided overactive bladder (OAB) symptoms into OAB dry and OAB wet to assess their prevalence percentages by using the current definitions.

Methods: OAB syndrome in our computerized database was re-defined as having the following storage symptoms present, that is, frequency, urgency, nocturia, urgency incontinence, or stress urinary incontinence (SUI). The prevalence of OAB syndrome was determined with a different taxonomy for those five storage symptoms either singly or in combination. OAB symptoms which were probably associated with mixed incontinence were either ignored or excluded.

Results: The prevalence of OAB syndrome varied from 34.76% to 28.33% to 20.95% using different classifications of the above five storage symptoms. The prevalence of OAB wet symptoms increased with advancing age and this finding was consistent with three different definitions.

Conclusions: The prevalence of OAB using the current definition is slightly higher than the result found in our previous published data using a defective classification system of OAB symptoms. The effects of mixed symptoms and probable misclassification cannot be overlooked because many women with OAB (with or without urgency incontinence) might also have SUI.