Symptoms of the lower urinary tract in pregnant women in prenatal care.

Abstract

Introduction: During pregnancy, hormonal and mechanical factors responsible for the development and fetal growth
causes changes in the genital and urinary tract of women. It is observed the appearance of urinary symptoms in
pregnant women previously continents up to 74%. Evaluate urinary symptoms and knowledge of the perineal region
in this period is important because they impact negatively on the quality of pregnant women’s life. Objective: To
evaluate the presence of urinary symptoms and knowledge of PFM in pregnant women. Method: This is a descriptive
cross-sectional study that evaluated pregnant women in care at the Basic Health Unit of Sao Paulo/SP. The characterization
of women was taken by the assessment form, to measure urinary symptoms was used the International Consultation
on Incontinence Questionnaire - Short Form (ICIQ - SF). On the other hand, the knowledge of PFM was evaluated by a
specific questionnaire. Results: We evaluated 37 pregnant women with a mean age of 26.3 (14 and 37) years, body
mass index of 28.5 (20.8 and 45.8) kg/m2 and gestational age of 24.8 (5 e 40) weeks. We observed the presence of
UI in 81.1% of pregnant women, with a mean severity of 9.9 points for the ICIQ - SF. And about 54% of them knew of
the existence of PFM and only 20% could locate the muscles. Conclusion: It was observed a high prevalence of urinary
symptoms in women with moderate severity. Half of the women reported knowing the PFM, but only one fifth of them
were able to locate them.