Examination of pelvic floor symptoms, kinesiophobia, pain catastrophizing and quality of life in women according to different levels of frailty

This study was designed to invest pelvic floor symptoms, kinesiophobia, pain catastrophizing, and quality of life levels in women according to different levels of frailty. The study included a total of 185 individuals: 25 frail individuals with an average age of 47.44±5.76 years, 79 pre-frail individuals with an average age of 47.85±5.9 years, and 81 non-frail individuals with an average age of 48.01±6.34 years. Individual socio-demographic information was assessed using the Assessment Form, pelvic floor symptoms were assessed using the Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory-20 (PFDI-20), kinesiophobia levels were assessed using the Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia (TSK), pain catastrophizing was assessed using the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), quality of life was assessed using the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP), while frailty levels were assessed using the FRAIL Scale. Individuals were divided into three groups according to the FRAIL Scale: frail, pre-frail, and non-frail. The study found that, according to different levels of frailty, the well-being of frail individuals was significantly worse than that of the other two groups in terms of pelvic floor symptom levels, pain catastrophizing, and quality of life (p<0.05). No difference was observed between groups in terms of kinesiophobia levels (p>0.05). NHP (Physical Activity) and PFDI-20 scores showed a weak positive correlation in the non-frail group (r=0.312, p=0.005) and pre-frailty group (r=0.244, p=0.030), and a moderate positive correlation in the frail group (r=0.483, p=0.014). This study found that pelvic floor symptoms, pain catastrophizing, and quality of life in women are associated with levels of frailty.