The natural history of lower urinary tract symptoms in females: analysis of a health screening project.

Objective: To analyse over 6.5 yr the natural history of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) of continent women participating in a health investigation.

Methods: Women participating in a health screening survey in the area of Vienna in 1998-1999 underwent a detailed health investigation and completed the Bristol Female LUTS questionnaire. In 2005, all women still living in the area of Vienna were contacted by mail to complete the Bristol LUTS questionnaire again. For the current study, only women without urinary incontinence at baseline and follow-up were eligible.

Results: A total of 223 women (mean age, 50.3 yr; range, 21-79) were included in this 6.5-yr longitudinal study. At baseline, 80 women (35.9%) reported LUTS; this number increased to 105 (47.1%) 6.5 yr later. The calculated mean annual incidence of LUTS was 5.3% and revealed no clear dependency on age: 20-39 yr, 5.6%; 40-59 yr, 5.9%; > or =60 yr, 3.7%. The mean annual remission rate of LUTS was 4.6% without clear age dependency. Symptoms most likely to improve were "urgency"; "frequency"; "nocturia" and "feeling of incomplete bladder emptying" had the highest tendency of worsening.

Conclusions: This longitudinal study on the natural history of LUTS in women without urinary incontinence provides estimates for incidence and remission rates over 6.5 yr. Compared with men, LUTS in women are a dynamic rather than a necessarily progressive disorder.