Urinary symptoms and quality of life in women living with HIV: a cross-sectional study

To determine prevalence and quality of life impact of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in women living with HIV (WLWH).

Cross-sectional urinary questionnaires were included in a multicenter national prospective study of the HPV vaccine in WLWH. Demographic and clinical information was abstracted from the parent study. The Urinary Distress Inventory (UDI-6) and Urinary Impact Questionnaire (UIQ-7) were administered. Wilcoxon rank sum, two-sample chi-square or Fisher's exact tests were used as appropriate to compare women with UDI-6 score ≥ 25 to those with lower UDI-6 scores on demographic and HIV-related factors. Significant categorical variables were followed up with logistic regression to estimate odds ratios (OR).

One hundred seventy-seven women completed urinary questionnaires (85.5% of cohort). Median age was 44.1 (37.2-50.6). Mean CD4 count was 621 (410-785), and 132 women (74.6%) were virologically suppressed. Median UDI-6 score was 4.2 (0-25). Fifty-one women (28.8%) had a UIQ-7 score > 0. Among those with a UDI-6 score of at least 25, median UIQ-7 was 9.5 (0-47.6). UDI-6 ≥ 25 was significantly associated with increasing age, higher BMI, Canada as country of origin, peri-/postmenopausal status (OR 3.37, 95% CI = 1.71 to 6.75) and being parous (OR 2.92, 95% CI = 1.27 to 7.59) (all p < 0.05). HIV-related factors were not associated with UDI-6 ≥ 25.

LUTS were common, but we did not demonstrate a negative impact on quality of life in this sample of WLWH. Large comparative studies are needed to determine whether HIV is a risk factor for bothersome LUTS in women.