Aim: Bladder diaries including bladder perception grades were analyzed to assess overactive bladder (OAB) symptoms in community-dwelling women 40 years of age or older.
Methods: Three hundred ten women (mean 58 years) completed a 3-day bladder diary. The perception grades were defined as follows: 0 = no bladder sensation, 1 = sensation of bladder filling without desire to void, 2 = desire to void, 3 = strong desire to void, 4 = urgency without urge urinary incontinence (UUI), and 5 = urgency with UUI.
Results: Forty-eight women (15.5%) had OAB symptoms on medical interview, including 37 (11.9%) without UUI (OAB-Dry) and 11 (3.5%) with UUI (OAB-Wet). In the analysis of 5,709 voids, the voided volume significantly increased with the grades of perception. The 24 hr voided volume in the OAB-Dry group was significantly larger than that in the Normal group. The average voided volume in the OAB-Wet group was significantly smaller than in the OAB-Dry and the Normal groups. The mean voided volume at grade 3 in the Normal without urgency group was significantly larger than volumes in any other group. In the analysis of grades 4 and 5, voided volumes in the OAB-Wet group were significantly smaller than those in the Normal and/or OAB-Dry groups.
Conclusions: A bladder diary that includes a new bladder perception grade was thought to be useful in assessing urinary sensation or incontinence as well as voiding pattern. The causes of symptoms such as urgency or urinary frequency may be different between the Normal, OAB-Dry, and OAB-Wet groups.
(c) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.