• Nazife Akan and Behire Sancar.
• Nazife Akan, Assistant Professor, Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Toros University, 45 Evler Campus, Mersin, Turkey.
• Pak J Med Sci. 2024 Aug 1; 40 (7): 144814531448-1453.

ObjectivesUrinary incontinence (UI) is the involuntary loss of urine or the inability to control urination. The International Continence Society defines UI as any complaint of involuntary loss of urine. UI is a very important health problem that affects women's quality of life. It can lead to a decrease in women's self-confidence and prevent them from participating in social activities. This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of UI in women living in Turkey, the factors affecting it, and women's attitudes toward UI.MethodsThis descriptive and cross-sectional study included 903 women who applied to 17 family health centers in Mersin, Turkey, between May 10th to June 10th 2019 for any reason. The data of the study were obtained using the descriptive information form and the Urinary Incontinence Attitude Scale (UIAS). Data analysis was performed with SPSS-21 using percentiles, mean±standard deviation, and Pearson chi-square tests.ResultsAccording to the results obtained, 28.9% of the women had UI problems, more than half (54.6%) of the women with UI did not present to a health institution for this problem, and 54.8% did not receive any treatment. In addition, the frequency of experiencing UI was higher in those with a chronic disease (59.2%) than in those without any chronic disease, and the difference was significant.ConclusionThe demographic and fertility characteristics of the women influenced the frequency of experiencing UI. In addition, among the women participating in the study, those with negative attitudes toward UI experienced more UI problems. There should be greater efforts to raise awareness among women on this subject.Copyright: © Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences.

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