Objective: To study the prevalence of urinary incontinence in the elderly, the impacts of urinary incontinence, and the reasons why elderly people with urinary incontinence do not seek treatment from a doctors, and to study self-management when urinary incontinence occurs.
Material and Method: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study. Interviews were performed with 300 residents aged 60 and above residing in subdistricts 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 of Banpru municipality, Hat Yai district, Songkhla province. The
questionnaire was modified from the International Consultation on Incontinence Modular Questionnaire and tested for content validity and reliability. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test.
Results: It was found that 23 of the 300 subjects interviewed (8.0%) had urinary incontinence. Fifteen female (65.0%) and 8 male (35.0%). Almost half of the patients (48.0%) were between 70 and 79 years old. The most common type of urinary incontinence was stress incontinence (13 persons: 57.0%). The most common impact of their urinary incontinence was givenas boredom (20 persons: 87.0%). Only 2 had seen a doctor (8.0%). Twenty-one said they were afraid to go out to see their doctor because they thought this symptom was an effect of aging (91.0%) and took no action when urinary incontinence occurred.
Conclusions: The prevalence of urinary in continence in people aged 60 and above was 8.0%. Just eight percent of
those suffering from incontinence had consulted a doctor, while the rest did not because they thought that urinary
incontinence was a characteristic of aging. Therefore, the dissemination of knowledge about urinary incontinence will
increase awareness and understanding of this symptom in the elderly.