Urinary incontinence occurs in 17–55% of older women living in the community.1–3
Medically, it predisposes individuals to perineal rashes, pressure ulcers, falling, insertion of
an indwelling catheter, urosepsis, and death.1–3 Psychosocially, it is associated with
stigmatization, anxiety, depression, cessation of sexual intimacy, and institutionalization.1–3
The annual direct costs for urinary incontinence was estimated to be nearly $20 billion
annually in the United States in 2000.1–3 These cost estimates from a decade ago are
conservative because then many individuals with urinary incontinence were unknown to
their physician and thus neither evaluated nor treated. Additionally, neither the substantial
indirect costs nor the attendant medical or psychosocial morbidity are included in estimates
of its impact.