(Poster 68) Understanding the Complaint of Urinary Frequency

Objectives: A complaint of urinary frequency is subjective and different patients may develop bother from frequency at different inter-void intervals. The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between inter-void interval and complaint of urinary frequency in a population of women presenting with overactive bladder (OAB) symptoms.

Methods: Female patients with OAB symptoms presenting to a urology/urogynecology clinic were enrolled. Patients were asked about presenting symptoms including urgency, frequency, nocturia and inter-void interval. A t-test was performed to determine if there was an association between inter-void interval and complaint of urinary frequency. Multiple regression was performed to determine if the variables examined could predict a complaint of urinary frequency.

Results: A total of 100 patients were enrolled in this study with an average age of 64.3 years. A total of 82 patients complained of urinary frequency. Reported inter-void interval among patients complaining of urinary frequency ranged from 0.3 hours to 6 hours. The most common chief complaint was urinary urgency (n=62). A t-test showed a significant association between complaint of urinary frequency and hours between voids (p=0.002), but a regression model showed that only 18% of the variation in frequency could be explained by hours between voids alone. A multiple regression model including urgency, nocturia, diabetes, cups of caffeine and non-caffeinated beverages and inter-void interval was able to explain 44.9% of the variation in complaint of frequency, this was statistically significant (p < 0.05).

Conclusions: Bother from urinary frequency is variable and number of hours between voids alone cannot alone predict which patients will report frequency. A regression model including urgency, nocturia and factors which may impact total urine production in addition to hours between voids was better able to predict which patients were bothered enough by frequency to report it. Patient education regarding normal inter-void interval may be valuable. Furthermore, treating nocturia and urgency may improve bother from frequency.