Involvement of Urease-Producing Bacteria on Genital Skin in Community-Dwelling Women with Incontinence-Associated...

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Microbiology
• Urology

Background:

• Elevated skin pH promotes pathogenic bacteria, leading to skin barrier dysfunction.
• Incontinence-associated dermatitis (IAD) causes significant physical and psychological distress.
• Urease-producing bacteria are implicated in raising skin pH through urea breakdown.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between urease-producing bacteria and IAD in women with urinary incontinence.
• To determine if urease-producing bacteria contribute to the elevated skin pH observed in IAD.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study of 114 women with urinary incontinence.
• Cultured genital skin swabs for urease-producing bacteria using urea agar medium.
• Measured skin pH and total bacterial counts; compared outcomes between IAD and no-IAD groups.

Main Results:

• IAD was present in 31.6% of participants.
• Higher detection rates of urease-producing bacteria and elevated medium pH in the IAD group.
• No significant difference in total bacterial counts or specific bacterial species between groups.

Conclusions:

• Urease-producing bacteria are associated with the development of IAD in women with urinary incontinence.
• Alkalization of genital skin by these bacteria may disrupt skin homeostasis.
• Specific bacterial species responsible for IAD could not be identified in this study.