Functional disability among older women with fecal incontinence.

OBJECTIVE: The prevalence of functional disability for basic activities of daily living (ADLs) in older women with fecal incontinence (FI) is not well characterized. Our objective was to determine the prevalence of functional disability among community-dwelling older women with FI. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a secondary database analysis of the 2005-2006 National Social Life, Health and Aging Project, a cross-sectional study of community-dwelling older adults that had been conducted by single in-home interviews. FI was defined as an affirmative answer to the question, "Have you lost control of your bowels (stool incontinence or anal incontinence)?" with a frequency of "at least monthly." We then examined functional status. Women were asked about 7 basic ADLs. Statistical analyses with percentage estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were performed. RESULTS: We included 1412 women in our analysis. FI, at least monthly, was reported by 5.5% of community-dwelling older women (n = 77); 63.2% (95% CI, 50.1-76.4) of the women with FI reported difficulty or dependence with ≥1 ADLs, and 31.2% (95% CI, 18.9-43.6) of the women specifically reported difficulty or dependence with using the toilet. After adjustment for age category, race/ethnicity, education level, women with FI had 2.6 increased odds (95% CI, 1.26-5.35) of difficulty or dependence compared with women with no FI. Other significant risk factors for increased functional difficulty/dependence included obesity (body mass index, ≥30 kg/m(2)) and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: Consistent with other large epidemiologic studies, we found monthly FI was reported by 5.5% of older women (n/N = 77/1412). More than 60% of community-dwelling older women with FI report functional difficulty or dependence with ≥1 ADL and specifically; more than 30% of women with FI report difficulty or dependence using/reaching the toilet. Because of the high prevalence of functional disability in older women with FI, we purpose that initial evaluation and treatment of FI may be improved by considering functional status.

Information Priorities for Deciding on Treatment of Pelvic Organ Prolapse.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to elicit information priorities from women considering treatment for pelvic organ prolapse (POP). STUDY DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study of women before and after treatment of stage II or higher POP. Women were recruited either at the conclusion of their initial evaluation (before treatment) or at postoperative or pessary maintenance visits (after treatment). Women completed a written survey that used a Likert scale to rank potentially frequently asked questions (FAQs) that could be important information to use in decision making for POP. RESULTS: Among the 100 women surveyed, 32 women wanted to pursue surgical options and 18 women wanted to pursue nonsurgical treatment options in the before treatment group. In the after treatment group, 35 women had undergone surgery and 15 women were using a pessary.Overall, women ranked FAQs about treatment success (overall Likert score, 1.11±0.35), quality of life after treatment (1.18±0.41), and complications and side effects (1.20±0.57) as the most important information when making a decision. Women were least concerned with FAQs regarding cost (2.39±1.48), impact on sexual function (2.21±1.4), and impact on hormones (2.20±1.27). CONCLUSIONS: Women with POP identified the most important FAQs related to treatment success and complications, quality of life, and understanding how the treatment works. This information will be used to develop a comprehensive decision aid for women considering treatment options for POP.

Urodynamic leak point pressures weakly correlate with subjective urinary incontinence severity.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate preoperative abdominal leak point pressures (ALPP) with pre- and postoperative Incontinence Severity Index (ISI) scores. METHODS: A review of women who underwent a midurethral sling procedure between August 2004 and April 2006 was conducted. Eligible women completed preoperative urodynamic testing with ALPP determination and subjective incontinence severity assessment using the ISI before and 6 weeks after surgery. The ISI and ALPP relationship was analyzed using a Spearman rank correlation (Rho). RESULTS: Ninety-nine women met the inclusion criteria. Mean ALPP was 77.7 (25-172 cm H2O). Mean improvement in ISI following surgery was 4 (-8 to 12). ALPP correlated with preoperative ISI (Spearman Rho -0.28, P=0.01), preoperative leakage frequency (ISI question 1) (Spearman Rho -0.32, P=0.001), and the ISI change 6 weeks postoperatively (ISI-delta) (Spearman Rho -0.23, P=0.002). CONCLUSION: ALPP is associated with subjective incontinence severity. Women with the lowest ALPP improved most following a midurethral sling procedure.

Does pelvic organ prolapse reduction affect abdominal leak point pressures?

OBJECTIVE: To determine if pelvic organ prolapse reduction decreases cystometric leak point pressure. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective review was performed of women with pelvic organ prolapse points Aa, Ba or C > or = -1 cm that leaked with and without vaginal support (barrier testing) during multichannel urodynamic investigation (N=44). An analysis of the mean and difference between leak point pressure (LPP) (vesicle pressure) with and without prolapse reduction was used to determine significance. RESULTS: Among 460 possible study subjects, 15% (71/460) leaked only with and 4% (17/460) only without prolapse reduction. Among the 44 women who leaked both with and without prolapse reduction, prolapse reduction was associated with a mean decrease in LPP of 16.1 cm H2O (95% CI 7.4-24.7, p = 0.0005). CONCLUSION: Reduction of pelvic organ prolapse is associated with a mean decrease in LPP of 16.1 cm H2O.

Clerkship enhancement of interpersonal skills.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this research was to determine if students improve interpersonal skills as the third year progresses despite the lack of any specific curriculum or teaching methods. METHODS: Third-year students completed 1 of 3 16-week sequential clerkship blocks. Each student completed a clinical performance examination before and after clerkship consisting of a videotaped standardized patient interview and physical examination. Videotapes were randomly assigned to communication faculty for evaluation. RESULTS: Although the majority (73%) of students improved during their block, 17% showed no improvement, and 12% had deficient interpersonal skills after their clerkship. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the lack of skill-directed curriculum, most medical students showed improved interpersonal skill performance after a 16-week clerkship. Developing an interpersonal curriculum for all third-year students may not be necessary. Because faculty are being asked to do more with less, we believe efforts focused on individual students during the third year will be more productive.

Functional disability and compromised mobility among older women with urinary incontinence.

OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to determine the prevalence of functional disability among older women with urinary incontinence (UI). METHODS: We conducted a secondary analysis of the 2005-2006 National Social Life, Health and Aging Project. Daily UI was defined as answering "daily" to the question, "How frequently… have you had difficulty controlling your bladder, including leaking small amounts of urine, leaking when you cough or sneeze, or not being able to make it to the bathroom on time?" We then explored functional status. Women were asked about 7 basic activities of daily living (ADLs). Statistical analyses with percentage estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were performed. Logistic regression was performed to assess the association between functional status and daily UI. RESULTS: In total, 1412 women were included in our analysis. Daily UI was reported by 177 (12.5%) women. Functional dependence or disability with any activities of daily living was reported in 62.1% (95% CI, 54.2%-70.1%) of women with daily UI. Among women with daily UI, 23.6% (95% CI, 16.8%-30.5%) reported specific difficulty or dependence with using the toilet, signifying functional limitations which may contribute to urine leakage. After adjusting for age category, race/ethnicity, education level, and parity, women with daily UI had 3.31 increased odds of functional difficulty or dependence compared with continent older women. CONCLUSIONS: More than 60% of older women with daily UI reported functional difficulty or dependence and one fourth of women with daily UI specifically reported difficulty or dependence with using the toilet.

Pseudolipomatosis in hysteroscopically resected tissues from the gynecologic tract: pathologic description and frequency.

Pseudolipomatosis is an artifactual microscopic change in tissues that resembles fatty infiltration, most often described in the gastrointestinal tract. The fatlike spaces represent air or gas bubbles that enter the mucosa through microscopic ruptures secondary to gaseous insufflation. We report a series of cases of pseudolipomatosis encountered in gynecologic tissues removed during hysteroscopic procedures, a finding not previously described. We identified 300 consecutive hysteroscopic procedures performed at our institution from 2006 to 2008. Patients' medical records were reviewed to collect pertinent clinical data. Slides from all cases were systematically reviewed. The diagnosis of pseudolipomatosis was established by consensus. Twenty-eight cases of pseudolipomatosis, representing 9.3% of patients who under went hysteroscopy, were identified. Pseudolipomatosis was found in 9 endometrial curettings or biopsy tissues, 8 endometrial or endocervical polyps, 8 uterine fibroids, 2 fallopian tubes, and 1 endocervical biopsy. The type of distention medium used and length of hysteroscopic procedure did not differ significantly between cases with and without pseudolipomatosis. Pseudolipomatosis vacuoles varied in distribution from crowded clusters to sparsely scattered and solitary. Occasionally, vacuoles were found in vascular channels. Vacuoles were round or ovoid, unilocular, and variable in size. Immunohistochemical staining for adipocyte and endothelial markers were negative. We hypothesize that pseudolipomatosis derives from air that is almost invariably introduced into the uterus during media insufflation for hysteroscopy, creating a bubble under pressure. The air enters tissues either through lining microruptures or during the biopsy procedure. Pseudolipomatosis is a relatively common, easily overlooked finding in hysteroscopically derived specimens that may be misdiagnosed when prominent.