Evaluation the effects of urinary and fecal incontinence on anxiety and depression levels in patients hospitalized in internal medicine clinics

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of urinary and fecal incontinence on anxiety and depression levels in patients hospitalized in internal medicine clinics. Materials and Methods: The sample group consisted of 321 patients (65.4% male) with a mean age of 60.43 ± 11.17 years hospitalized in internal medicine clinics in a university hospital. Data were collected by the researcher by face to face interview method with patient identification form and hospital anxiety depression scale. T-test, chi-square, Fisher's exact chi-square test and Pearson correlation analysis were used for data analysis. Significance was accepted as p <0.05 within 95% confidence interval. Results: 34.3% (n= 110) of the patients had urinary incontinence, 12.5% (n= 40) had fecal incontinence and 6.8% (n= 22) had both urinary and fecal incontinence complaints together. Urinary incontinence was more common in women than men, urinary incontinence was more common in women who had large babies or five or more births, and urinary incontinence increased as body mass index increased. It was found that there was no difference between men and women according to presence of fecal incontinence complaints, more fecal incontinence complaints were found in women with six births, and there was no significant relationship between fecal incontinence complaints and body mass index and age. Anxiety and depression levels were higher in patients with urinary or fecal incontinence than those without. Conclusions: The presence of urinary or fecal incontinence complaints may increase anxiety and depression levels in patients hospitalized in internal medicine clinics. According to these results; it may be recommended to conduct investigations to diagnose and diagnose the presence of fecal and urinary incontinence in patients hospitalized in internal medicine clinics, to take measures to facilitate daily life in patients with incontinence problems, and to guide and evaluate anxiety and depression levels. Key Words: Anxiety, depression, urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence.