Interpersonal trauma and aging-related genitourinary dysfunction in a national sample of older women

Among reproductive-aged women, exposure to interpersonal trauma is associated with genitourinary symptoms. Little is known about the relationship between these exposures and the genitourinary health of older women, who tend to experience different and more prevalent genitourinary symptoms because of menopause and aging.

In this study, we examined relationships between common types of interpersonal trauma and aging-related genitourinary dysfunction among older women.

We analyzed data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project, a national area probability sample of older community-dwelling adults born between 1920 and 1947. We used cross-sectional data from home-based study visits conducted in 2005-2006 to examine interpersonal violence exposures (any lifetime sexual assault, past-year emotional and physical abuse), and past-year genitourinary symptoms (urinary incontinence, other urinary problems, and vaginal pain/lubrication problems with sexual intercourse) among women participants. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to relate interpersonal violence and genitourinary symptoms, adjusting for age, race/ethnicity, body mass index, education, marital status, parity, hormone therapy, depressive and anxiety symptoms, and self-reported health. In exploratory models, we further adjusted for vaginal maturation, a tissue-specific marker of aging-related urogenital atrophy obtained from vaginal self-swabs.

In this national sample of 1551 older women (mean age 69 ± 2 years), 9% reported sexual assault, 23% reported emotional abuse, and <1% reported physical abuse. Urinary incontinence and other urinary problems were reported by 42% and 17%, respectively, and 42% of sexually active women (n = 527) reported vaginal symptoms with intercourse. In multivariable regression analyses adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, education, marital status, parity, hormone therapy, anxiety, depressive symptoms, and self-reported health, women with any lifetime history of sexual assault had 2.5 times the odds (95% confidence interval, 1.0-6.3) of vaginal symptoms, while women who reported past-year emotional abuse had higher odds of urinary incontinence (odds ratio, 1.7, 95% confidence interval, 1.2-2.4) and other urinary problems (odds ratio, 1.8, 95% confidence interval, 1.2-2.8). Among women who provided vaginal self-swabs (n = 869), adjustment for vaginal maturation-attenuated associations with other urinary problems (odds ratio, 1.6, 95% confidence interval, .9-2.6) and vaginal symptoms (odds ratio, 2.2, 95% confidence interval, 0.8-5.8).

Sexual assault and emotional abuse may play a role in the development or experience of aging-related genitourinary dysfunction in older women. Clinicians caring for older women should recognize the prevalence and importance of traumatic exposures in health related to menopause and aging.