Evaluation of oxidative stress parameters in older patients with urinary incontinence

Objectives: Urinary incontinence (UI) is defined as any type of involuntary loss of urine. Pathophysiological changes that occur in the urinary system due to aging, especially ischemia, cause functional and structural changes in the urinary system. Oxidative stress is caused by an imbalance between the body's oxidative radicals and antioxidant defense systems. In this study, we aimed to investigate the link between UI and oxidative stress indicators in older people. Methods: Patients were divided into two groups: The group with incontinence and the group without incontinence. A comprehensive geriatric evaluation was performed on all patients, and they were compared according to serum native thiol, disulfide, and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels. Results: A total of 145 patients aged 65 years and older were included in the study (44, incontinence; 101, continence). The median age of individuals with UI was 75 (69-83) years. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were made to determine the cut-off for thiol-disulfide homeostasis and IMA. Disulfide and native thiol divide disulfide values awere more significant than other oxidative stress parameters. The area under the curve (AUC) values were 0.65 (95 CI:0.55-0.74) for disulfide and 0.60 (95CI:0.50-0.70) for disulfide divide native thiol (p=0.005, p=0.049, respectively). Conclusions: Thiol disulfide homeostasis and IMA molecules, which are indicators of oxidative stress, were found to have significantly higher levels of disulfide and disulfide divide native thiol in patients with incontinence. We think it may be important to look at the possible therapeutic benefits of paying attention to the levels of these molecules in relation to the management of UI in older people.