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A BSTRACTS
B81
Antihypertensive Drug Class Use Associated with Urinary
Incontinence in Community-Dwelling Elderly Women?
E. P. Peron, 1 Y. Zheng, 1 S. Perera, 1 A. B. Newman, 1 N. M. Resnick, 1
R. I. Shorr, 2 D. C. Bauer, 3 E. M. Simonsick, 4,5 S. L. Gray, 6
J. T. Hanlon, 1 C. M. Ruby. 1 1. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA;
2. Gainesville VA Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center,
Gainesville, FL; 3. University of California, San Francisco, CA; 4.
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; 5. National Institute on
Aging Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD; 6. University of
Washington, Seattle, WA.
Supported By: This study was primarily supported by National
Institute on Aging grants and contracts (P30 AG024827, T32
AG021885, K07 AG033174, R56 AG027017, R01 AG034056), a
National Institute of Nursing Research grant (R01 NR010135), and
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality grants (R01
HS017695, R01 HS018721, K12 HS019461).
Background: Medication use is a potentially reversible cause of
urinary incontinence (UI). This cohort study evaluated whether the
use of specific antihypertensive classes is associated with self-reported
incident UI in community-dwelling older women.
Methods: The sample consisted of 959 black and white women
aged 72 to 81 years without baseline (Year 1) UI from the Health,
Aging and Body Composition study. Use of any antihypertensive
from 10 drug classes (i.e., alpha blockers [central], alpha blockers [peripheral],
angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin-II
receptor blockers, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, diuretics
[loop], diuretics [potassium-sparing], diuretics [thiazide], or vasodilators)
was determined during Year 3 in-person interviews. Self-reported
UI, operationally defined as leaking urine at least weekly during
the previous 12 months, was assessed at Year 4 visits.
Results: Overall, 197 women (20.5%) reported incident UI. Use
of specific antihypertensive drug classes ranged from a high of 32.4%
for diuretics (specifically, 8.1% for loop, 9.8% for potassium-sparing,
and 24.3% for thiazide) to a low of 5.6% for peripheral alpha blockers.
Use of nine of the 10 antihypertensive classes was not associated
with incident UI (all p>0.05). Only peripheral alpha blocker use (i.e.,
prazosin, doxazosin, terazosin) increased the risk of UI (adjusted
odds ratio [AOR] 4.47; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.79-11.21).
There was an even greater increased risk of UI with peripheral alpha
blockers when taken in combination with loop diuretics (AOR 8.81;
95% CI 1.78-43.53).
Conclusions: In elderly community-dwelling women, peripheral
alpha blocker use was associated with incident UI, and this risk nearly
doubled when used in combination with loop diuretics.
B82
Increased Rhythmic Gait Variability May Contribute to Falls Risk in
Older Knee Osteoarthritis Patients.
J. E. DeCaria, 1 R. J. Petrella, 1,2 M. Montero-Odasso. 2,3 1. Aging,
Rehabilitation & Geriatric Care, Lawson Health Research Institute,
London, ON, Canada; 2. Schulich Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry,
The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada; 3. Gait and
Brain Lab, Parkwood Hospital, London, ON, Canada.
BACKGROUND: Reduced joint motion and flexibility in knee
osteoarthritis (OA) patients may impair gait consistency. Increased
gait variability is associated with instability, and is a valid and strong
predictor of falls. However, the role of gait variability as a contributor
to falls in knee OA is unknown. Our objective was to determine if
rhythmic and postural gait variability is elevated in a sample of older
knee OA patients compared to healthy older adults.
METHODS: Community-dwelling older adults without cognitive
or neurological impairment were included. The gait characteristics
of 30 older knee OA patients (Kellgren-Lawrence II-III) were
compared to those of 23 healthy older adults. Gait characteristics
during self-selected gait velocity were determined with a 10 metre
electronic walkway (GAITRite). Rhythmic and postural gait variability
was calculated as the coefficient of variation (CoV) for stride
time (StrTM) and double-support time (DSTM) respectively. Significant
differences between groups (p