Factors Influencing Physical Activity on Quality of Life in Urinary Incontinence

Abstract

<h3>Research Objectives</h3> The objective of the present study was to investigate the impact of physical activity on the quality of life (QOL) of Korean middle-aged women with urinary incontinence (UI) by using the online questionnaire constructed for this study. <h3>Design</h3> This is an online survey study. An online survey was conducted between August 2020 and March 2021. This study was approved by the Yonsei University Mirae Campus Institutional Review Board (Approval Number. 1041849-202009-BM-106-02). <h3>Setting</h3> Data were collected via "Embrain"―an online research platform―and the convenience method. All questionnaires were conducted online. <h3>Participants</h3> A total of 250 middle-aged women between 40 and 69 years of age participated in this survey. <h3>Interventions</h3> N/A. <h3>Main Outcome Measures</h3> The survey had a 61 questions and consisted of four parts: General information, Characteristics of UI, Incontinence Quality of Life (I-QOL), Physical activity-International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), daily step count (DSC), physical activity at work (PAW), and the Borg scale during 1 min of sit-ups (BSS). <h3>Results</h3> The influences of independent variables on the scores of respondents in the I-QOL were examined using a hierarchical regression analysis. Variables for predicting I-QOL included severity, PAW, and the BSS, and IPAQ and DSC did not show significant results in the hierarchical regression analysis. <h3>Conclusions</h3> We investigated factors influencing the QOL of middle-aged Korean women with UI. The factors affecting I-QOL were PAW and BSS. Therefore, we recommend that occupational type and perceived exertion through muscular endurance testing elements should be included in UI assessment. <h3>Author(s) Disclosures</h3> The authors declare no conflicts of interest, and this study did not receive research funding.