Four-year follow-up of women who were diagnosed to have postpartum urinary retention

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term prevalence of urinary incontinence in women with postpartum urinary retention. Study Design: A telephone interview was conducted by contacting a cohort of 691 women who delivered vaginally 4 years ago, of which 101 women had been diagnosed as having postpartum urinary retention. A structured telephone interview consisted of 9 questions on the possible outcomes of postpartum urinary retention. Results: Of the original cohort of 691 women, 394 women were contacted. Seventy-three women had had postpartum urinary retention, and 321 women had not. In women who had had postpartum urinary retention, the prevalence of the outcome variables were urinary stress incontinence (28.8%), fecal incontinence (2.7%), frequency (39.1%), nocturia (65.2%), urgency (26.1%), urge incontinence (26.1%), and coital incontinence (13%). Analyses showed that there was no significant difference between women with and without urinary retention. Conclusion: Women who had had postpartum urinary retention did not have a higher prevalence of urinary stress incontinence. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2002;187:648-52.)