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. 2023 Jun;209(6):1167-1175.
doi: 10.1097/JU.0000000000003387. Epub 2023 Feb 22.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms and Impact Among Women

Sonya S Brady  1 , Andrés Arguedas  2 , Jared D Huling  2 , Liang Shan  3 , Cora E Lewis  4 , Cynthia S Fok  5 , Stephen K Van Den Eeden  6   7 , Alayne D Markland  8   9
Affiliations

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms and Impact Among Women

Sonya S Brady et al. J Urol. 2023 Jun.

Abstract

Purpose: This study utilizes CARDIA (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults) cohort study data to examine whether (1) family-based adverse childhood experiences, recalled by women aged 32 to 47, are associated with lower urinary tract symptoms and their impact, a composite variable with 4 levels (bladder health and mild, moderate, or severe lower urinary tract symptoms/impact), and (2) extensiveness of women's social networks in adulthood attenuates an association between adverse childhood experiences and lower urinary tract symptoms/impact.

Materials and methods: In 2000-2001, frequency of adverse childhood experiences exposure was retrospectively assessed. In 2000-2001, 2005-2006, and 2010-2011, extensiveness of social networks was assessed; scores were averaged. In 2012-2013, lower urinary tract symptoms/impact data were collected. Logistic regression analyses examined whether adverse childhood experiences, extensiveness of social networks, and their interaction were associated with lower urinary tract symptoms/impact, adjusting for age, race, education, and parity (n=1,302).

Results: Recall of more frequent family-based adverse childhood experiences was associated with report of more lower urinary tract symptoms/impact over 10 years later (OR=1.26, 95% CI=1.07, 1.48). Social networks during adulthood appeared to attenuate the association between adverse childhood experiences and lower urinary tract symptoms/impact (OR=0.64, 95% CI=0.41, 1.02). Among women with less extensive social networks, estimated probability of experiencing moderate or severe lower urinary tract symptoms/impact vs bladder health or mild lower urinary tract symptoms/impact was 0.29 and 0.21 for those reporting an adverse childhood experiences frequency corresponding to more than "a little" vs "rarely or none of the time," respectively. Among women with more extensive social networks, estimated probabilities were 0.20 and 0.21, respectively.

Conclusions: Family-based adverse childhood experiences are related to lower urinary tract symptoms/impact vs bladder health in adulthood. Additional research is needed to corroborate the potentially attenuating effect of social networks.

Keywords: adverse childhood experiences; lower urinary tract symptoms; psychological; resilience.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest:

Sonya S. Brady: None

Jared D. Huling: None

Andrés Arguedas: None

Liang Shan: None

Cora E. Lewis: None

Cynthia S. Fok: None

Stephen K. Van Den Eeden: None

Alayne D. Markland: None

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Estimated Probability of LUTS/Impact by ACEs and Extensiveness of Social Networks: Results from Logistic Regression Analyses
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Dataset use reported in

  • Editorial Comment.
    McKernan LC. McKernan LC. J Urol. 2023 Jun;209(6):1175. doi: 10.1097/JU.0000000000003387.01. Epub 2023 Mar 17. J Urol. 2023. PMID: 36927110 No abstract available.

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