Body composition associated with symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction in middle-aged middle-aged women

Body composition associated with symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction in middle-aged middle-aged women

Body composition is associated with symptoms of pelvic floor disorders in middle-aged women, according to a recent study at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland. Greater fat mass increases the risk of stress urinary incontinence. The risk factors include greater fat mass, particularly in the waist area and around visceral organs, as well as greater waist circumference and body mass index.

The prevalence of pelvic floor disorders increases as women approach their menopausal years. Estrogen deprivation, natural aging of tissues, reproductive history, and factors that increase intra-abdominal pressure can lead to structural and functional failure in the pelvic floor.

In addition, lifestyle choices such as eating habits and physical activity can impact the mechanisms of pelvic floor disorders. Body composition partly reflects lifestyle choices and can therefore be considered a modifiable factor affecting a woman's risk of pelvic floor disorder symptoms.

Previous studies have primarily used body mass index or waist circumference in assessing the risk of pelvic floor disorders. The purpose of our study was to explain how body composition, measured using accurate methods, is associated with symptoms during four-year follow-up. “

Doctoral student Mari Kuutti from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences at the University of Jyväskylä

The conditions examined were stress urinary incontinence, urgency incontinence, fecal continence and pelvic organ prolapse.

Over half of the women had symptoms of pelvic floor disorders

At baseline, over half of the participating women had some symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction. The most common symptoms were stress urinary incontinence. The study showed that body composition is associated with the presence of the symptoms of pelvic floor disorders.

“We examined body adiposity, measured waist circumferences of participants and calculated body mass index,” says Kuutti. “We then analyzed the associations of these factors with the symptoms of pelvic floor disorders.”

The results showed that total fat mass, android fat mass, gynoid fat mass and trunk fat mass, as well as visceral fat area were associated with symptoms of stress urinary incontinence. Similarly, greater body mass index and waist circumference were associated with stress urinary incontinence symptoms.

Changes in body composition during the four-year follow-up were not associated with changes in pelvic floor disorder symptoms.

"The association of body composition with symptoms of pelvic floor disorders was found in the cross-sectional analysis. In other words, we showed that current body composition is associated with present symptoms."

The study is part of the larger ERMA study and its four-year follow-up study ESMIRS. Participants included 376 women in the Jyväskylä region. They were 47 to 55 years old. Body composition was measured using multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analyzer, x-ray absorptiometry and anthropometry. Demographic factors (age, education, physical workload, and physical activity) and gynecologic factors (pregnancies, parity, menopausal status, and hysterectomy status) were self-reported using questionnaires.

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