Study of the Relationship between the Severity of Postpartum Urinary Incontinence and Parity and the Quality of Life in Multiparous Women

Postpartum urinary incontinence affects an average of 10 to 40 percent of pregnant women after childbirth. This problem leads to lowering of their quality of life and spending high cost for treatment. The aim of this study was investigation the relationship between the severity of postpartum urinary incontinence and parity in multiparous women. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 192 women who referred to AL-Zahra and Izadi clinic of Qom، Iran in 2012 for treatment of postpartum urinary incontinence. Data gathering tools were two questionnaires named UDI-6 (Urogenital Distress Inventory) and IIQ-7 (Incontinence Impact Questionnaire). Based on the research''s aims، variables such as delivery type، number of children and age were evaluated. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 18 and Pearson Correlation Coefficient test. P value less than 0. 05 was considered significant. From 192 studied women، 105 women (54. 7%) experienced natural delivery، and 59 women (30. 8%) experienced cesarean section and the rest were experienced both types of delivery. 66 women (34. 4%) had two children، 35 women (18. 2%) had three children and the rest had more than three children. There was a significant relationship between the severity of urinary incontinence and quality of life (p<0. 001) and the number of children (p=0. 04). Increase in the number of children is not inconsistent with the quality of life، but causes some problems in woman urogenital system. Therefore there is a need to think about increasing the power of the pelvic muscles in order to maintaining the quality of life by exercises before increasing the number of children.